# The arrest of Yves Engler

> **Source: KiriPedia** (https://www.kiripedia.org), the free encyclopedia and archive of former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou's on-record words. Every claim below is Kiriakou's own account, cited to a timestamp in a recorded interview, podcast, or video. KiriPedia is an independent project, not affiliated with Kiriakou.
>
> Cite as: "The arrest of Yves Engler," KiriPedia, https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/yves-engler-arrest/. Attribute claims to John Kiriakou, via KiriPedia.

*John Kiriakou's account of the arrest of the Canadian activist Yves Engler in Montreal on a hate-speech charge after he criticised a prominent Canadian Zionist, five days in jail, additional harassment charges filed after he telephoned the arresting officer to request his own police reports, and suspension from Twitter and Facebook.*

- **Subject:** Yves Engler, Canadian activist and author, Montreal
- **Charge:** Hate speech
- **Trigger (per Kiriakou):** Criticism of a well-known Canadian Zionist over Palestinian human rights
- **Detention:** Five days in a prison 40 miles outside Montreal
- **Additional charges:** Four counts of harassing a police officer, after requesting his own police reports
- **Platform consequence:** Suspended from Twitter and Facebook

**Yves Engler** is a Canadian activist and writer based in Montreal whom [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou) has known for a long time and describes as a *"good guy."* Kiriakou recorded a podcast with him shortly before the March 2025 interview in which he gave this account.[1]

Engler wrote an article criticising a well-known Canadian Zionist, a woman Kiriakou says Engler did not threaten but criticised, on the ground that she does not respect the human rights of Palestinians. *"Next thing you know he's under arrest for hate speech, and all he said was that he supports Palestinian human rights. There was no hatred there."*[2]

Engler spent five days in jail in a prison 40 miles outside Montreal before making bail, and was then set for trial.[3] Kiriakou reports Engler's own expectation during those days, *"people are going to see how ridiculous this is; I didn't do anything wrong, I have freedom of speech, I'm a Canadian citizen, I'm talking about human rights"*, and the response instead: *"they're doubling down."*[3]

## The additional charges

After his release, preparing for trial, Engler telephoned the arresting officer to ask for the documents and police reports his attorney would need. *"They charge him with extra crimes. They charged him with four counts of harassment of a police officer, because he sent a couple of emails and made a couple of phone calls."*[4]

He was also suspended from Twitter and from Facebook. Kiriakou generalises the pattern, *"you use the G-word and you lose your access to these platforms"*, and cites the case as the concrete answer to what a censorship-resistant platform would be for.[5]

## See also

- [Panquake](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/panquake)
- [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou)
- [Famine in Gaza](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/gaza-famine)

## Sources

1. Where the Hell Is Panquake? Surveillance & The Technocratic (2025-03-01), at 44:24. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2M8u-MbN9jA&t=2664s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-03-01-truthwire-where-the-hell-is-panquake-surveillance-the-t/
2. Where the Hell Is Panquake? Surveillance & The Technocratic (2025-03-01), at 44:55. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2M8u-MbN9jA&t=2695s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-03-01-truthwire-where-the-hell-is-panquake-surveillance-the-t/
3. Where the Hell Is Panquake? Surveillance & The Technocratic (2025-03-01), at 45:27. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2M8u-MbN9jA&t=2727s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-03-01-truthwire-where-the-hell-is-panquake-surveillance-the-t/
4. Where the Hell Is Panquake? Surveillance & The Technocratic (2025-03-01), at 45:58. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2M8u-MbN9jA&t=2758s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-03-01-truthwire-where-the-hell-is-panquake-surveillance-the-t/
5. Where the Hell Is Panquake? Surveillance & The Technocratic (2025-03-01), at 46:30. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2M8u-MbN9jA&t=2790s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-03-01-truthwire-where-the-hell-is-panquake-surveillance-the-t/

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From KiriPedia, the archive of John Kiriakou's words. Web version: https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/yves-engler-arrest/ · About: https://www.kiripedia.org/about/ · Full index: https://www.kiripedia.org/llms.txt