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The first man known to be on Canada’s no-fly list has been denied government funding to fight his legal challenge.

Hani Al Telbani, a Concordia University engineering student, was at Montreal’s Trudeau airport about to board an Air Canada flight to Saudi Arabia in 2008 when he was stopped. He was shown a copy of an emergency direction from the Minister of Transport declaring he “posed an immediate threat to aviation security.”

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Mr. Al Telbani’s case sparked debate over racial profiling, civil liberties, public safety and national security and brought legal challenges that continue to be argued in court. He denied being a danger and claimed in court filings that the government unjustly associated him with terrorism.

But, in a recent decision, the Federal Court of Appeal has rejected his plea to have the government pay his legal costs in advance.

Nathalie Des Rosiers, general counsel of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, said Mr. Al Telbani is undertaking an “important constitutional” fight, and she was surprised the court rejected the request.