Overview
- The pause followed Patel’s public criticism on X of an internal CBC memo about using the word “terrorism” for the Sept. 11 attacks.
- CBC changed its guidance on Aug. 28 to allow journalists to call the 2001 attacks terrorism without attributing the label to an expert.
- In the days after that change, FBI officials canceled meetings with Royal Canadian Mounted Police counterparts and said they would be out of contact for a period.
- The halt was limited to the FBI, was short-lived, and ended around the 25th anniversary of the attacks while other U.S. intelligence sharing continued.
- The episode left questions about whether U.S. officials sought an apology and whether senior White House figures knew about the pause, and it renewed concern that political disputes could harm counterterrorism and cybersecurity cooperation.