“We disagree with Mr. Fatah about many things — his socialist politics, for instance, and his strenuous criticism of Israeli policies. But he is doing a fine job holding radical Islamists and terror-apologists accountable for their unCanadian views. And for this, Canadians owe him their thanks.”

Editorial Board

The National Post

Toronto, Canada

The ongoing battle between activist Tarek Fatah and the Canadian Arab Federation (CAF) is a microcosm of the larger struggle for the soul of Canada’s Muslim and Arab communities.

Mr. Fatah — a socialist who lived in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia before coming to Canada — champions a separation between mosque and state, respect for liberal social values and a rejection of terrorism.

The leaders of CAF, on the other hand, support terrorist groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah, run programs designed to indoctrinate young Canadian children with Israel-hatred and rant about alleged Zionist conspiracies on Parliament Hill and in Canadian newsrooms.

While Mr. Fatah and the CAF once shared common ground — the CAF even gave the man an award in 2001 — they have since launched into a war of words that reflect their mutually irreconcilable view of Muslims’ and Arabs’ role in Canadian society.

This week, Mr. Fatah used his social-networking savvy to score a major blow in this battle: He alerted his contacts, many of whom are members of the national media, that CAF vice-president Omar Shaban had celebrated Canada Day by posting “F--k Canada” on his Facebook page, called Canada a “genocidal state” and declared that he “couldn’t be more ashamed to be Canadian.”

Even for the CAF, this was too much (which is really saying something). The next day, Mr. Shaban resigned.

We disagree with Mr. Fatah about many things — his socialist politics, for instance, and his strenuous criticism of Israeli policies. But he is doing a fine job holding radical Islamists and terror-apologists accountable for their unCanadian views. And for this, Canadians owe him their thanks.