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Montreal’s mayor and police must take a stronger stance on anti-Israel protests, say local politicians
Montreal police (SPVM) are failing to use Criminal Code provisions and municipal bylaws to address unlawful and hate-related activities in the city on a regular basis, and a stronger tone needs to be set, say a trio of Montreal-area politicians.
Writing to Mayor Valérie Plante on Dec. 18, Mount Royal MP Anthony Housefather, along with Côte Saint-Luc Mayor Mitchell Brownstein and Westmount Mayor Christina Smith, expressed “deep concern” about the SPVM’s failure to address unlawful assembly, incitement to hatred, mischief, disturbing religious worship and intimidation, while preferring de-escalation in most cases.
Acknowledging civilian police oversight cannot direct daily operations or how cases are handled, the group wrote, “We can address deficiencies in policy and strategic guidance that have emboldened hate activists to regularly violate the law, without consequence.” The three signatories want to see policy direction to ensure zero tolerance for antisemitic crime and activity in Montreal, and “police robustly use the criminal law tools and municipal bylaws available to them to protect the public.”
They cite damage at Concordia University on Nov. 21 and Palais des congrès on Nov. 22 as a result of violent protesters; intimidation by demonstrators outside Shaar Hashomayim synagogue on Nov. 5, despite a court injunction; and activities in Westmount involving clear violations of municipal bylaws, among other instances. “The approach taken by SPVM appeared to be rooted, at least in part, in the desire to de-escalate, and thereby reduce violence,” which they say is a commendable goal—but add the current approach is flawed.
“Over-reliance” on non-enforcement to de-escalate has emboldened protesters and demonstrators to engage in intimidating, violent acts and unequivocal hate speech, they say, which police fail to recognize at protests, demonstrations and riots. “This hate speech promotes fear, emotional trauma and psychological harm on targeted community members, affecting the community’s perceived safety. It normalizes hatred, creating a culture that marginalizes those affected and makes future discrimination, hate crimes and general violence more likely.”
They contend the SPVM approach undervalues and undermines the rationale of criminalizing wilful promotion of hatred and betrays a lack of understanding of the full range of tools available to police. If the goal is to de-escalate and reduce violence, “the goal is not succeeding. Montreal, more than any other city in our country, is witnessing protests that are not peaceful, as hatemongers believe they can act with impunity, with few if any consequences.”
The City of Montreal & its police force need to improve the way they police demonstrations. Following meetings with Mayor Plante & police, Mayors @mbrownsteincsl & @smithwestmount & I have written to Mayor Plante to explain what needs to change & how to do it. pic.twitter.com/poo83sOeAR
— Anthony Housefather (@AHousefather) December 19, 2024
While Housefather, Brownstein and Smith took pains to praise officers on the ground and efforts to protect Jewish institutions since October 2023, they contend the SPVM is also undermining constitutional rights of those victimized.
They reminded Plante about Rabbi Adam Scheier, who was ordered by police to leave a Montreal street corner as a pro-Palestinian demonstration passed to avoid inciting the crowd, “in the misguided belief that intimidation is best addressed by capitulating to those who might hate a man wearing a kippah.” A few weeks earlier, Rabbi Scheier and attendees were advised by police to leave their synagogue through the back door to avoid an illegal demonstration.
They want the agglomeration (which governs shared municipal services like the SPVM but is effectively controlled by the City of Montreal) to have police use existing provisions to address unlawful activities associated with anti-Israel protests; conduct specialized training on hate crime investigations (repeating a request to call on Toronto attorney Mark Sandler to train police in hate crime investigations); implement zero-tolerance for antisemitism and other forms of hate; and ensure robust enforcement of all relevant laws.
The letter details how Criminal Code provisions may be applied but are ignored, for example, participating in unlawful assemblies and wearing masks or disguising oneself pursuant to section 66. Incitement to hatred, mischief, disturbing religious worship, counselling terrorist activity, and intimidation have all been duly recorded and witnessed multiple times over the last year by Montrealers, Jews and non-Jews alike, yet the SPVM, they write, continues to look the other way, preferring maintaining peace over enforcing order.
Missing from the Montreal police toolkit, they contend, is understanding the significance of protesters’ language and symbols, which requires expertise, noting some protest activities “speak powerfully to wilful promotion of hatred and incitement to hatred,” including glorification of terrorist symbols, slogans, and activities, praise for Oct. 7 architect and deceased Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.
The letter was copied to SPVM Chief Fady Dagher, Chief Inspector Mohamed Bouhdid, and other elected officials, along with Deborah Lyons, the federal special envoy on preserving Holocaust remembrance and combatting antisemitism. It was delivered the same day as an appeal from the United Against Hate Canada (UAHC) advocacy group, urging all suburban mayors to address the issue.
Montreal has become the epicentre of antisemitism in Canada, says UAHC director general and former Montreal city councillor Marvin Rotrand, citing SPVM numbers indicating 238 reported hate crimes and incidents targeting Jewish communities since Oct.7, 2023. The Dec. 18 Beth Tikvah synagogue firebombing is the latest in a “growing list of violent incidents against Jews and Jewish institutions in Montreal.”
The SPVM says there have been 42 arrests in connection with anti-Israel demonstrations and antisemitic incidents in the city since October 2023, but refused to divulge any information about the cases, many of which, The CJN has learned, have not yet been turned over to Quebec prosecutors.
There have been few arrests or charges in Montreal in contrast to elsewhere in Canada, says Rotrand, who concurs with Côte Saint-Luc’s Brownstein, who recently charged that the tone is set by Montreal’s mayor, who has regularly expressed concerns that the free speech rights of protesters at hateful rallies targeting Israel need to be prioritized.
The Plante administration has been under a barrage of criticism over the last year for everything from anti-racism commissioner Bochra Manaï attending the rally where Adil Charkaoui called for God to slay all Zionists, to the administration’s condemnations of Islamophobia in the same breath as every statement on antisemitism, and proclamations of Montreal as a “city of peace.”
The letter comes as the SPVM releases a collection of photos three weeks following the destructive anti-NATO riots in Montreal, seeking the public’s help identifying suspects. That suggests a sluggish response, say critics, and a product of the SPVM strategy arresting perpetrators after incidents to avoid intensifying situations, but also minimizing any immediate deterrence.
Last week, Brownstein posted a message to Plante, offering as example how south shore Longueuil police and Sûreté du Québec officers acted in swift and muscular fashion without incident to clear protesters in their respective jurisdictions. “We are at an inflection point in the history of the city of Montreal,” he said. “The world is watching the streets of Montreal and is horrified by what they see.”
Rotrand laid some blame with Plante’s close colleagues, particularly Côte des Neiges-Notre Dame de Grâce borough mayor Gracia Katahwa, who slammed an action plan to combat antisemitism that was penned by one MP, two MNAs and several municipal politicians in west-end Montreal.
Plante’s point-person on fighting racism objected to a recommendation to allow off-duty, armed police officers, or specially trained security guards who carry weapons as when transporting cash for private business, to be hired to secure Jewish schools and institutions targeted by hate crimes and violence. She derided the report as “American-style gun-centred solutions.” Rotrand also cited Manaï’s behaviour and city councillor Alex Norris’s public support for the boycott, diverstment and sanctions movement.
At agglo council Dec. 19, Smith demanded action as residents, including many seniors, are subjected to weekly demonstrations and often blocked from entering or leaving their homes for hours on end, and businesses cannot be accessed or are forced to close early. “We need to see clear and easy access to homes and businesses,” she said, asking Plante to meet with police “to make sure all the bylaws of the City of Westmount are respected.”
The response came from Norris, who said he understand that some of the 400 demonstrations “can disturb and create inconveniences, but above all the right to demonstrate is enshrined in the constitution and charters of Canada and Quebec—and the mission of the SPVM, our mission, is to ensure the security of everybody. That’s residents, businesses, demonstrators, everybody, and we will respect the independence and professionalism of the SPVM.”
Smith was unimpressed. “I understand all that; everybody understands that. But noise, activities—sometimes it’s after midnight and for these people, it has been 15 months like this.” Businesses that survived COVID, she said, must now close a few times a week. “We have bylaws for this. It’s simple.”
Plante agreed her concerns were valid. “Bylaws must be respected, and we’ve had this conversation,” she said, pledging to follow up. “We have to go further and look at among other things, night disturbances and people feeling safe. That’s absolutely essential.”
For his part, Brownstein explained to agglo council that Criminal Code prohibitions already exist against unlawful assemblies and mask-wearing during such events. “Are police aware?” he asked Plante, adding they may need reminding or expert training. Norris said the city will look at Brownstein’s recommendations, “but with respect of the autonomy and professionalism of the police to make sure there is no interference in operational affairs.” Brownstein lauded police in his city for the work they do but said it’s time for Montreal to adopt “zero tolerance…. It’s enough.” He said a stronger tone is required, as are more arrests.
Plante called it “odd for you to tell us to interfere and tell the police what to do. I understand the feelings many people have but we must not interfere with forces of law and order because it creates problems for our democracy…. You have the right to not like my answer…. Since the beginning of the terrorist attacks by Hamas and afterwards, what’s happened in Palestine and with 400 demonstrations, we know it’s difficult for the Jewish community, absolutely, and we denounce it every single time.”
She said she will look at recommendations. “I understand the insecurity, but we’re not going to tell police what to do. Don’t ask me to tell the police what to do. I will always refuse.”
While Plante is not seeking a third term, her party, Projet Montréal, will contest the 2025 election, and Côte-des-Neiges—Notre-Dame-de-Grâce Mayor Gracia Kasoki Katahwa has already declared her interest in a city mayoralty run. In an email last week, Rotrand told supporters that, while his group rarely takes overt political positions, “We are calling for the defeat of Projet Montréal. Its total lack of empathy for the Jewish community should be one of the prime reasons for its defeat.”
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Israel Blocks Ramallah Meeting with Arab Ministers, Israeli Official Says
A closed Israeli military gate stands near Ramallah in the West Bank, February 18, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ammar Awad
Israel will not allow a planned meeting in the Palestinian administrative capital of Ramallah, in the West Bank, to go ahead, an Israeli official said on Saturday, after Arab ministers planning to attend were stopped from coming.
The move, days after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing government announced one of the largest expansions of settlements in the West Bank in years, underlined escalating tensions over the issue of international recognition of a future Palestinian state.
Saturday’s meeting comes ahead of an international conference, co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia, that is due to be held in New York on June 17-20 to discuss the issue of Palestinian statehood, which Israel fiercely opposes.
The delegation of senior Arab officials due to visit Ramallah – including the Jordanian, Egyptian, Saudi Arabian and Bahraini foreign ministers – postponed the visit after “Israel’s obstruction of it,” Jordan’s foreign ministry said in a statement, adding that the block was “a clear breach of Israel’s obligations as an occupying force.”
The ministers required Israeli consent to travel to the West Bank from Jordan.
An Israeli official said the ministers intended to take part in “a provocative meeting” to discuss promoting the establishment of a Palestinian state.
“Such a state would undoubtedly become a terrorist state in the heart of the land of Israel,” the official said. “Israel will not cooperate with such moves aimed at harming it and its security.”
A Saudi source told Reuters that Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud had delayed a planned trip to the West Bank.
Israel has come under increasing pressure from the United Nations and European countries which favour a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, under which an independent Palestinian state would exist alongside Israel.
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday that recognizing a Palestinian state was not only a “moral duty but a political necessity.”
Palestinians want the West Bank territory, which was seized by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war, as the core of a future state along with Gaza and East Jerusalem.
But the area is now criss-crossed with settlements that have squeezed some 3 million Palestinians into pockets increasingly cut off from each other though a network of military checkpoints.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said the announcement this week of 22 new settlements in the West Bank was an “historic moment” for settlements and “a clear message to Macron.” He said recognition of a Palestinian state would be “thrown into the dustbin of history.”
The post Israel Blocks Ramallah Meeting with Arab Ministers, Israeli Official Says first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Gaza Aid Supplies Hit by Looting as Hamas Ceasefire Response Awaited
Palestinians carry aid supplies which they received from the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, in the central Gaza Strip, May 29, 2025. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed
Armed men hijacked dozens of aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip overnight and hundreds of desperate Palestinians joined in to take supplies, local aid groups said on Saturday as officials waited for Hamas to respond to the latest ceasefire proposals.
The incident was the latest in a series that has underscored the shaky security situation hampering the delivery of aid into Gaza, following the easing of a weeks-long Israeli blockade earlier this month.
US President Donald Trump said on Friday he believed a ceasefire agreement was close but Hamas has said it is still studying the latest proposals from his special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff. The White House said on Thursday that Israel had agreed to the proposals.
The proposals would see a 60-day truce and the exchange of 28 of the 58 hostages still held in Gaza for more than 1,200 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, along with the entry of humanitarian aid into the enclave.
On Saturday, the Israeli military, which relaunched its air and ground campaign in March following a two-month truce, said it was continuing to hit targets in Gaza, including sniper posts and had killed what it said was the head of a Hamas weapons manufacturing site.
The campaign has cleared large areas along the boundaries of the Gaza Strip, squeezing the population of more than 2 million into an ever narrower section along the coast and around the southern city of Khan Younis.
Israel imposed a blockade on all supplies entering the enclave at the beginning of March in an effort to weaken Hamas and has found itself under increasing pressure from an international community shocked by the increasingly desperate humanitarian situation the blockade has created.
The United Nations said on Friday the situation in Gaza is the worst since the start of the war began 19 months ago, with the entire population facing the risk of famine despite a resumption of limited aid deliveries earlier this month.
Israel has been allowing a limited number of trucks from the World Food Program and other international groups to bring flour to bakeries in Gaza but deliveries have been hampered by repeated incidents of looting.
At the same time, a separate system, run by a US-backed group called the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has been delivering meals and food packages at three designated distribution sites.
However, aid groups have refused to cooperate with the GHF, which they say is not neutral, and say the amount of aid allowed in falls far short of the needs of a population at risk of famine.
“The aid that’s being sent now makes a mockery of the mass tragedy unfolding under our watch,” Philippe Lazzarini, head of the main U.N. relief organization for Palestinians, said in a message on the social media platform X.
NO BREAD IN WEEKS
The World Food Program said it brought 77 trucks carrying flour into Gaza overnight and early on Saturday and all of them were stopped on the way, with food taken by hungry people.
“After nearly 80 days of a total blockade, communities are starving and they are no longer willing to watch food pass them by,” it said in a statement.
Amjad Al-Shawa, head of an umbrella group representing Palestinian aid groups, said the dire situation was being exploited by armed groups which were attacking some of the aid convoys.
He said hundreds more trucks were needed and accused Israel of a “systematic policy of starvation.”
Overnight on Saturday, he said trucks had been stopped by armed groups near Khan Younis as they were headed towards a World Food Programme warehouse in Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza and hundreds of desperate people had carried off supplies.
“We could understand that some are driven by hunger and starvation, some may not have eaten bread in several weeks, but we can’t understand armed looting, and it is not acceptable at all,” he said.
Israel says it is facilitating aid deliveries, pointing to its endorsement of the new GHF distribution centers and its consent for other aid trucks to enter Gaza.
Instead it accuses Hamas of stealing supplies intended for civilians and using them to entrench its hold on Gaza, which it had been running since 2007.
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Hamas Seeks Changes in US Gaza Proposal; Witkoff Calls Response ‘Unacceptable’
US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy-designate Steve Witkoff gives a speech at the inaugural parade inside Capital One Arena on the inauguration day of Trump’s second presidential term, in Washington, DC, Jan. 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
Hamas said on Saturday it was seeking amendments to a US-backed proposal for a temporary ceasefire with Israel in Gaza, but President Donald Trump’s envoy rejected the group’s response as “totally unacceptable.”
The Palestinian terrorist group said it was willing to release 10 living hostages and hand over the bodies of 18 dead in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons. But Hamas reiterated demands for an end to the war and withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, conditions Israel has rejected.
A Hamas official described the group’s response to the proposals from Trump’s special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff as “positive” but said it was seeking some amendments. The official did not elaborate on the changes being sought by the group.
“This response aims to achieve a permanent ceasefire, a complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and to ensure the flow of humanitarian aid to our people in the Strip,” Hamas said in a statement.
The proposals would see a 60-day truce and the exchange of 28 of the 58 hostages still held in Gaza for more than 1,200 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, along with the entry of humanitarian aid into the enclave.
A Palestinian official familiar with the talks told Reuters that among amendments Hamas is seeking is the release of the hostages in three phases over the 60-day truce and more aid distribution in different areas. Hamas also wants guarantees the deal will lead to a permanent ceasefire, the official said.
There was no immediate response from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office to the Hamas statement.
Israel has previously rejected Hamas’ conditions, instead demanding the complete disarmament of the group and its dismantling as a military and governing force, along with the return of all 58 remaining hostages.
Trump said on Friday he believed a ceasefire agreement was close after the latest proposals, and the White House said on Thursday that Israel had agreed to the terms.
Saying he had received Hamas’ response, Witkoff wrote in a posting on X: “It is totally unacceptable and only takes us backward. Hamas should accept the framework proposal we put forward as the basis for proximity talks, which we can begin immediately this coming week.”
On Saturday, the Israeli military said it had killed Mohammad Sinwar, Hamas’ Gaza chief on May 13, confirming what Netanyahu said earlier this week.
Sinwar, the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar, the group’s deceased leader and mastermind of the October 2023 attack on Israel, was the target of an Israeli strike on a hospital in southern Gaza. Hamas has neither confirmed nor denied his death.
The Israeli military, which relaunched its air and ground campaign in March following a two-month truce, said on Saturday it was continuing to hit targets in Gaza, including sniper posts and had killed what it said was the head of a Hamas weapons manufacturing site.
The campaign has cleared large areas along the boundaries of the Gaza Strip, squeezing the population of more than 2 million into an ever narrower section along the coast and around the southern city of Khan Younis.
Israel imposed a blockade on all supplies entering the enclave at the beginning of March in an effort to weaken Hamas and has found itself under increasing pressure from an international community shocked by the desperate humanitarian situation the blockade has created.
On Saturday, aid groups said dozens of World Food Program trucks carrying flour to Gaza bakeries had been hijacked by armed groups and subsequently looted by people desperate for food after weeks of mounting hunger.
“After nearly 80 days of a total blockade, communities are starving and they are no longer willing to watch food pass them by,” the WFP said in a statement.
‘A MOCKERY’
The incident was the latest in a series that has underscored the shaky security situation hampering the delivery of aid into Gaza, following the easing of a weeks-long Israeli blockade earlier this month.
The United Nations said on Friday the situation in Gaza is the worst since the start of the war 19 months ago, with the entire population facing the risk of famine despite a resumption of limited aid deliveries earlier this month.
“The aid that’s being sent now makes a mockery of the mass tragedy unfolding under our watch,” Philippe Lazzarini, head of the main U.N. relief organization for Palestinians, said in a message on X.
Israel has been allowing a limited number of trucks from the World Food Program and other international groups to bring flour to bakeries in Gaza but deliveries have been hampered by repeated incidents of looting.
A separate system, run by a US-backed group called the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, has been delivering meals and food packages at three designated distribution sites.
However, aid groups have refused to cooperate with the GHF, which they say is not neutral, and say the amount of aid allowed in falls far short of the needs of a population at risk of famine.
Amjad Al-Shawa, head of an umbrella group representing Palestinian aid groups, said the dire situation was being exploited by armed groups which were attacking some of the aid convoys.
He said hundreds more trucks were needed and accused Israel of a “systematic policy of starvation.”
Israel denies operating a policy of starvation and says it is facilitating aid deliveries, pointing to its endorsement of the new GHF distribution centers and its consent for other aid trucks to enter Gaza.
Instead it accuses Hamas of stealing supplies intended for civilians and using them to entrench its hold on Gaza, which it had been running since 2007.
Hamas denies looting supplies and has executed a number of suspected looters.
The post Hamas Seeks Changes in US Gaza Proposal; Witkoff Calls Response ‘Unacceptable’ first appeared on Algemeiner.com.