Shots fired at Toronto synagogue after Purim celebration; none injured

Police in Toronto, Canada, said that shots were fired at a synagogue in the North York district of the city on Tuesday night, during the Purim holiday.

Police received a call about gunshots at the synagogue at around 10:50 p.m. and found damage to the building, CBC News reported.

The UJA Federation of Greater Toronto said the shooting took place “shortly after community members had left the synagogue, where they had gathered for a party to celebrate the holiday of Purim.”

Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said the attack targeted the city’s Temple Emanu-El Synagogue.

“The overnight shooting at Temple Emanu-El Synagogue in North York is an unacceptable act of antisemitism and intimidation,” Chow said in a statement. “We will not tolerate antisemitic hate in our city. Toronto Police are investigating and will increase their presence in the area to keep the community and congregants safe.”

The chief of the York regional police, Jim MacSween, said police will “continue special deployments” in the area in response to the shootings.

“All Canadians should be alarmed by what’s happening in our country. This isn’t solely a threat to the Jewish community — it’s a threat to every Canadian who wants to live in peace and safety,” said Noah Shack, CEO of Canada’s Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs. “The escalation of intimidation and extremism targeting Jewish Canadians will inevitably lead to much worse — and the consequences are potentially lethal.”

Canada has seen a surge in antisemitism in recent years and synagogues and other Jewish institutions have been targeted repeatedly.

Toronto’s UJA Federation said it was the fourth time Jewish institutions targeted with gunfire in the city in the past two years, “in addition to countless threats and acts of vandalism.”

In some recent incidents in Canada, a Toronto Jewish girls’ school was hit with gunfire in overnight shootings three times, two Jewish institutions in Montreal were hit by firebombings, three men attempted to kidnap Jewish women, antisemitic graffiti was daubed on three synagogues in Nova Scotia, and a Jewish man in Montreal was beaten in front of his children.

According to a report published by B’nai Brith Canada in April, Canadians experienced 6,219 antisemitic incidents in 2024, or an average of about 17 incidents of harassment, vandalism or violence per day. That was 125% higher than in 2022, and about 7% higher than in 2023, when hatred exploded after October 7.

Last month, anti-Zionist groups in Canada launched a campaign targeting Jewish children’s summer camps.