A Palestinian dance production co-directed by a man charged by Israel over connections to a terrorist organization is coming to Montreal’s Jewish owned Olympia Theatre on October 27. The performance is being promoted in collaboration with the Palestinian Youth Movement, an organization that has previously glorified the October 7 Hamas massacre.
The production, Ya Saheb Al Tair, is being presented by Mosaic of Cultures, which is bringing approximately 30 members of the El-Funoun Palestinian Popular Dance Troupe to Canada for performances in Mississauga, Montreal and Ottawa. Founded in 1979 and based in Al-Bireh, near Ramallah in Samaria, El-Funoun combines traditional Palestinian dance with productions promoting Palestinian nationalism and political resistance.
The Olympia’s own description of the performance identifies Palestinian identity, national history and attachment to the land as central themes. The Canadian tour is being organized in collaboration with the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM), the Canadian Palestinian Foundation of Quebec and the Association of Palestinian Arab Canadians.
The Palestinian Youth Movement is no stranger to Montreal’s Jewish community. MJN previously reported on the organization’s involvement in organizing an October 7 demonstration in downtown Montreal, marking the anniversary of the Hamas massacre in Israel. The organization has promoted armed Palestinian resistance and circulated material associated with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a terrorist organization listed by the Canadian government.
PYM has also attracted attention internationally for its statements following the October 7 attacks. The Anti-Defamation League has documented examples of the organization’s rhetoric and activities that it identified as glorifying Hamas and the massacre.
The more serious connection involves Ata Khattab, who remains listed on El-Funoun’s official website as its head of training and choreography.
Khattab was arrested by Israeli security forces on February 2, 2021. According to an April 26, 2021 statement issued by Israel’s Ministry of Justice, Israeli authorities possessed evidence connecting Khattab to the PFLP, an organization responsible for aircraft hijackings and terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians.
Israeli authorities accused Khattab of using his dance and choreography activities as cover for terrorism-related operations. The Ministry of Justice reported that Khattab had admitted during questioning that his cultural activities were connected to an organization affiliated with the PFLP. On March 29, 2021, Israeli prosecutors filed three charges against him involving employment by, membership in and providing services to an illegal organization.
Khattab was released from detention in March 2022 after approximately one year in custody. His supporters maintained that the charges were politically motivated. The final outcome of the proceedings has not been established.
His involvement in the production coming to Montreal is documented by Palestinian media. A report published by Palgraph concerning performances of Ya Saheb Al Tair in Ramallah in late 2025 identifies Khattab and Noora Baker as the production’s directors. El-Funoun continues to list Khattab among its senior artistic leadership. His personal participation in the Canadian tour has not been confirmed.
The Canadian tour’s publicly identified sponsors include GFA Realty, Accento Studios, the Canadian Independent Media Foundation, Doctors Against Genocide and Sultan Law. Mosaic of Cultures is the official presenter of the Montreal performance.
The Olympia’s owner, Patrick Levy, has a longstanding connection to Montreal’s Jewish community. His father, Robert Levy, founded Radio Shalom, the city’s former Jewish radio station, which began broadcasting on CJRS 1650 AM in 2007. Patrick served on the station’s board of directors. The station was established to promote Jewish culture, Jewish identity and discussion of Israel and Jewish affairs, and continued its Jewish programming until 2016. MJN Editor Howie Silbiger hosted a political talk show on the station for years.
Patrick Levy has previously refused to allow performers associated with Jew hatred to appear at his theatre. In January 2014, he refused to rent the Olympia to French comedian Dieudonné because of his Holocaust-related statements, specifically citing his Jewish identity when explaining his decision.
In November 2022, the Olympia cancelled a scheduled concert by French rapper Freeze Corleone following complaints about his anti-Jewish lyrics and references to Hitler and the Holocaust. Levy explained that the booking had been arranged by his staff without his personal approval and that he would never have knowingly booked the performer.
The decision to cancel Freeze Corleone demonstrated that Levy was prepared to intervene even after an outside promoter had arranged a performance. The concert was removed from the theatre’s schedule, and ticket sales were stopped.
Four years later, the Olympia is preparing to host a Palestinian production directed in part by a man who faced criminal charges over connections to the PFLP, with the Palestinian Youth Movement helping organize its Canadian appearances.
The issue is no longer what the Olympia knew when the contract was signed. The background of El-Funoun’s leadership and its Canadian collaborators is now a matter of public record. Levy has already demonstrated that he can intervene in a booking when he believes the circumstances warrant it, and he cannot simply pass responsibility to an outside promoter.
His father spent years building an institution dedicated to Montreal’s Jewish community, while Patrick himself has publicly invoked his Jewish identity when refusing other performers. He now has to decide whether those principles still carry weight when the controversy involves a Palestinian production. The decision is his, and so is the responsibility for what appears on his stage.
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