After others expressed doubts about his reliability in the cockpit due to his anti-Israel social media statements, an Air Canada pilot has been suspended from flying for an undetermined period of time.
Captain Mostafa Ezzo of Air Canada uploaded many selfies to social media, and the StopAntisemitism Twitter account published screenshots of those posts, noting that the aircraft he flies is the same one that the airline normally flies to Tel Aviv.
“They ought to probably keep him from traveling that way. StopAntiSemism tweeted, “Just to be safe.
One of the selfies by the Montreal-based pilot saw him wearing an informal Palestinian flag scarf around his neck while wearing his Air Canada uniform.
A fourth screenshot taken by StopAntisemitism before Ezzo deleted his social media accounts showed a flyer for a pro-Palestinian rally held in Montreal one day after the terror attacks in southern Israel.
Other screenshots showed Ezzo holding signs with anti-Israel themes, such as “ISR*EL HITLER IS PROUD OF YOU—TERRORIST STATE” and a stick figure throwing an Israeli flag into a trash can with the words “KEEP THE WORLD CLEAN.”
Ezzo added a caption that said, “[obscenity] you Israel burn in hell,” along with a picture of a dog defecating on an Israeli flag.
A few hours later, Air Canada tweeted back, calling Ezzo’s posts “unacceptable,” adding, “We are taking this matter very seriously, and he was taken out of service on Monday, Oct. 9.”
StopAntisemitism tagged Air Canada in a second tweet, adding, “We imagine this hatred is a violation of company policy.” We vehemently condemn violence of all kinds.
Twitter users weren’t particularly encouraged by Air Canada’s statement. “Out of commission? How does that make sense?”, said tweeter Gene Valaitis.
How can you be sure that if this pilot ever has the opportunity to fly into Israel, he won’t go kamikaze with a plane full of passengers? ”
Will he be returned to duty? asked user Claude Leclair. “If so, please tell me so that I can rebook my flight.
The Toronto Sun (www.bit.ly/491fdc3) was informed by Air Canada sources that Ezzo is the subject of an investigation and that, although he is still eligible to fly on the airline as a passenger, he has been withdrawn from any planned assignments.
According to Air Canada spokesperson Peter Fitzpatrick, “We did this because this individual’s opinions and publications on social media do not in any way represent Air Canada’s views.”
The use of the phrase “this person has never been authorized to speak publicly while identifying themselves as an Air Canada employee”
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