I think the key to the arrest was the influence of the complainant. Police could not be seen to be "not addressing" claims of "anti-Semitism" or a "hate crime". Consequently, mere bureaucracy has taken over. He'll be released on low bail and asked to steer clear while the investigation is happening. He'll have others publish for him. Enough public pressure will have the charges dropped.

Say it with me now:

Criticism of the State of Israel is not anti-Semitism.

No matter what the Zionists say, wherever they say it.

Probably the answer to that question is in one of Yves's (the activist in question) books on Canada's relationship with Israel. It's much more complicated than U.S. bootlicking.

The fact that this is happening in Montreal is interesting since it has a large Jewish population, but has now grown a huge Arab population, and anti-Semitism there is pretty big now.