Bomb threats emailed to over 100 Jewish institutions in Canada
Jewish community leaders say threat was ‘designed to disrupt lives,’ thank law enforcement for swift response; Trudeau decries ‘blatant antisemitism’ of targeted campaign
Dozens of Jewish institutions across Canada received a threatening email early Wednesday morning saying bombs had been planted on their premises and would be detonated later that day, community groups said.
No bombs were reported to have been found as of Wednesday afternoon, although local media said that investigations were still ongoing.
“This was a threat that we took very seriously,” a spokesperson from B’nai Brith Canada told local news channel CP24. “We’re very grateful for the swift response from law enforcement to the threat.”
Eta Yudin, Quebec vice-president of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), said there was “no imminent threat,” and that the threat seemed to be “nuisance emails designed to disrupt lives,” according to Yahoo News.
A spokesperson for the Montreal police department told CBC that the department received an emergency call at 7:10 a.m. from a synagogue, and began to sweep threatened locations, as it began receiving additional reports about the same email.
The Toronto Police also conducted bomb searches, and at least one hospital in Ottawa confirmed that police had swept the premises.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said in a statement that it was working with local authorities, and that law enforcement was “engaging with faith-based leaders to ensure they have the information and support they need.”
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took to X on Wednesday to condemn the threat, posting, “I’m disgusted at reports that more than 100 Jewish institutions across Canada were targeted by threats today. This is blatant antisemitism.
“The RCMP is in contact with local law enforcement to investigate, and we’re working with them to keep Jewish Canadians safe,” he added.
“Jewish Canadians will not be intimidated — we will continue to take part in Canadian society and Jewish life. We will stay vigilant, but we will never be intimidated,” said Yudin of CIJA, to Yahoo News.
Rabbi Reuben Poupko, of the Beth Israel Beth Aaron Congregation in Montreal, told CBC, “The purpose of that email is really an assault on the psyche of a community. But if that was the intent, it certainly failed. I mean, every synagogue [in Montreal] was open.”
Last month, Trudeau appointed Anthony Housefather to serve as an adviser on the Jewish community and combating antisemitism following a series of violent attacks on synagogues and Jewish schools in recent months.
Two synagogues in Toronto were attacked in July and had their windows smashed, shots were fired at Jewish schools in Montreal and Toronto in May, and there was a suspected arson attack at a Vancouver synagogue.
Housefather said upon his appointment that he would be seeking an all-of-government approach to addressing rising antisemitism, cutting through bureaucracy either through legislation or through moral suasion.
“We say ‘this is federal, this is municipal,’ people are being redirected all over the place and, and they’re just frustrated,” he said. “We need coordination between different levels of government.”
The Jewish Telegraphic Agency contributed to this report.
