Montreal, December 04, 2025 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) strongly condemns the denial of entry to award-winning journalist Samira Mohyeddin at the recent Munk Debate in Toronto, despite her membership and lawful possession of two tickets. Mohyeddin frequently reports on issues related to Israel and Palestine, while the event itself featured Israeli speakers debating the merits of a Palestinian state. Her deliberate exclusion, carried out by the Managing Director without clear justification, therefore represents a disturbing act of institutional censorship.
“This incident lays bare the Munk Debates' double standard: while claiming to champion civil discourse, they systematically suppress voices critical of Israeli policy or supportive of Palestinian rights,” said Jason Toney, Director of CJPME’s Media Advocacy Project. “The fact that the debate, centered on an issue of major consequence to Palestinians, featured only Israeli officials and excluded all Palestinian voices, makes this incident all the more egregious,” he added. Mohyeddin, recipient of PEN Canada’s 2025 Ken Filkow Prize for advancing freedom of expression in Canada, was barred entry by Munk Debate security despite presenting valid tickets and her membership card, and was repeatedly refused access without justification as video footage shows staff physically blocking her at the door.
What escalates this violation beyond institutional bias is the involvement of Toronto police officers, who enforced the exclusion by physically denying Mohyeddin access, and appeared to collaborate with Aaron Hadida, leader of the Zionist vigilante group Magen Herut. A video shared by Hadida on Instagram from later in the evening shows the arrest of an alleged protester inside the event venue. In the caption, Hadida claims to have worked with police to remove the demonstrator, writing, “We [Hadida and the police] took him out and the cuffs went on after he refused to leave. The cuffs are too tight and I had to Film [sic] it 🤣.” The former director of the Jewish Defence League in Canada, Meir Weinstein, insists that Aaron Hadida was an active member of the group, which is considered a terrorist organization by the FBI.
In further evidence of its bias, Munk Debates also offered special discounts to members of pro-Israel groups, including HonestReporting Canada, a group notorious for the controversial tactics it employs against journalists.
CJPME is calling on the Munk Debates to issue a public explanation and apology, and to commit to press freedom and transparent access policies. CJPME also agrees with international human rights lawyers who argued that two of the speakers, former Israeli officials Tzipi Livni and Ehud Olmert, should not have been given a platform but should have been arrested for war crimes. CJPME further calls on the Toronto Police Service and the City of Toronto to investigate and disclose the nature of police collaboration with Magen Herut. “Canada cannot allow a climate of repression, discrimination, and politically motivated censorship to take hold—especially against journalists and peaceful advocates. This is not merely a failure of event management, it is an indictment of the systemic complicity that allows vigilante groups and pro-Israeli actions to shape public space and silence dissent,” added Toney.