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Pierre Poilievre’s plan to speak at a Reform synagogue in Vancouver rouses backlash among liberal members
Members of Vancouver’s LGBTQ community are objecting to a scheduled Feb. 2 appearance by Pierre Poilievre at Temple Sholom, a socially and religiously liberal congregation affiliated with the Union for Reform Journalism.
The federal Conservative leader’s responses to questions about transgender rights, and the fact that audience questions will not be accommodated at the Vancouver event, have been cited as their primary concerns.
During an interview with Toronto news channel CP24, for example, Poilievre stated, “I am not aware of any other genders than men and women.”
Aviva Rathbone, the board chair of JQT, a Vancouver queer and trans non-profit, told The CJN, “Our trans community members are among the most vulnerable, with markedly higher rates of suicide and suicidal thoughts. Mr. Poilievre supports policies that would undoubtedly add to this harm and would see lives impacted in devastating and irreparable ways.
“We’re disappointed that Temple Sholom has chosen to prioritize forming a relationship with Mr. Poilievre over the safety and wellbeing of our community.”
Rathbone said that JQT (pronounced J-Cutie) is hopeful that Temple Sholom will view this as an opportunity to move beyond what she described as “performative allyship” and to learn to listen to the needs of all community members “not just when it’s easy and reflects well on the organization but also when it requires tough decisions.
“Our mandate is to have those difficult discussions and we will continue to hold organizations accountable for listening to the voices of the J-cuties who make up an integral and beautiful part of Vancouver’s Jewish community,” she said.
JQT said in a social media statement released on Thursday that many of its members had contacted them, distressed by Temple Sholom’s choice to host the event and the potential harm it could cause to people in the Jewish LGBTQ community in Vancouver.
The organization reached out to Temple Sholom to express its displeasure and try to persuade the synagogue not to provide “a voice, who clearly stands in opposition to trans rights, and the safety and well-being of our community.“
JQT said it had invited members of Temple’s Sholom’s leadership to address a call to action referred to within its community needs assessment that urges Jewish organizations to adopt a zero-tolerance position on homophobic, transphobic and antisemitic language, practices and policies.
In its social media post, JQT cited a letter written last February by the Reform Jewish Community of Canada (RJCC), to which Temple Sholom belongs, that called on governments at all levels to affirm and preserve transgender rights.
At the time, the RJCC criticized Alberta Premier Danielle Smith for “proposed policies to deny access to healthcare and athletics and placing barriers in educational settings for transgender youth.”
The letter, signed by Len Bates, president of RJCC, and Rabbi Daniel Mikelberg, chair of the Reform Rabbis of Canada, read, “We reaffirm our support for all those who seek to live without fear of harassment, violence, or discrimination, and that our clergy and institutions are committed to caring for and supporting everyone who is affected by this dangerous and widespread assault on trans and queer people.”
Like JQT, the RJCC also pointed out that LGBTQ youth are far more likely than their heterosexual peers to experience suicidal thoughts and thereby any denial of support puts their lives at greater risk.
Similar statements have been made by the U.S.-based Union for Reform Judaism, which is identified as a partner organization at the synagogue where Polievere is scheduled to appear.
“Guided by our Jewish values and the Reform Movement’s long history of supporting LGBTQ+ equality, we remain committed to protecting the civil rights of all people.” Read the Reform Movement’s full response to the slew of state attacks on LGBTQ+ youth: https://t.co/qDCJkBtawl
— The URJ (@URJorg) May 18, 2023
While it is being held at Temple Sholom, the appearance is being organized together with the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) and billed as a community-wide event for the Conservative leader to address the Jewish community of Vancouver. The event is fully booked—and the promotion notes the event will not be livestreamed or recorded.
It is not unusual for Temple Sholom to be a part of events involving the broader Jewish community in Vancouver. In March 2024, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with local rabbis at the synagogue’s boardroom. Events and rallies for the city’s Jewish community following Oct. 7 have been highlighted on the Temple Sholom website.
Dan Moskovitz, the senior rabbi at Temple Sholom, and Nico Slobinsky, vice president of CIJA, sent a joint statement to The CJN when asked about Poilievre’s appearance on Sunday.
“Temple Sholom, in partnership with CIJA, are hosting an event on Feb. 2 with Mr. Pierre Poilievre, the leader of the Official Opposition. At the event Mr. Poilievre will share perspectives on antisemitism and other issues related to the Jewish community,” they said. “Our organizations have proudly hosted similar events over the years for elected representatives and political leaders from all levels of government and parties. We have received an overwhelmingly positive response to the event from members of our community, the event sold out in less than two days.”
According to an email obtained by The Tyee, a news organization based in British Columbia, Moskovitz had asked for a question-and-answer format during Poilievre’s visit—similar to a 2015 event with Trudeau, when the then-leader of the Liberal Party visited the synagogue. Poilievre’s team refused that request and also denied a request to livestream the visit, the publication reported.
Poilievre’s Vancouver Synagogue Visit Is Raising Concerns. The planned speech and photo op leaves some members troubled by the leader’s refusal to take questions, @JenStDen reports. https://t.co/gsWMQtVAwY
Find out more at https://t.co/1zbPY5GAhV pic.twitter.com/0rGY5JPhhg
— National Newswatch (@natnewswatch) January 30, 2025
Members of Vancouver’s Jewish LGBTQ community, some of whom are congregants at Temple Sholom, told The Tyee they are dismayed that Poilievre would refrain from answering questions, including ones on transgender rights. They also wanted to ask him about his praise of Elon Musk, particularly after the Tesla CEO performed what some have interpreted as a Nazi salute at US President Donald Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20.
Poilievre has been a staunch defender of Israel and has repeatedly spoken out against antisemitism on college campuses and elsewhere following the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel.
On Jan. 27, to mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Poilievre said that his party stands “in solidarity with Canada’s Jewish community to honour the memory of the 6 million innocent live murdered in the Holocaust. In a dark time of rampant antisemitism in Canada, Conservatives unequivocally condemn the world’s most enduring form of hatred.”
The post Pierre Poilievre’s plan to speak at a Reform synagogue in Vancouver rouses backlash among liberal members appeared first on The Canadian Jewish News.
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Iran Says It Has Replaced Air Defenses Damaged in Israel War
The S-300 missile system is seen during the National Army Day parade ceremony in Tehran, Iran, April 17, 2024. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
Iran has replaced air defenses damaged during last month’s conflict with Israel, Iran’s Defah Press news agency reported on Sunday quoting Mahmoud Mousavi, the regular army’s deputy for operations.
During the conflict in June, Israel’s air force dominated Iran’s airspace and dealt a heavy blow to the country’s air defenses while Iranian armed forces launched successive barrages of missiles and drones on Israeli territory.
“Some of our air defenses were damaged, this is not something we can hide, but our colleagues have used domestic resources and replaced them with pre-arranged systems that were stored in suitable locations in order to keep the airspace secure,” Mousavi said.
Prior to the war, Iran had its own domestically-made long-range air defense system Bavar-373 in addition to the Russian-made S-300 system. The report by Defah Press did not mention any import of foreign-made air defense systems to Iran in past weeks.
Following limited Israeli strikes against Iranian missile factories last October, Iran later displayed Russian-made air defenses in a military exercise to show it recovered from the attack.
The post Iran Says It Has Replaced Air Defenses Damaged in Israel War first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Calm Reported in Syria’s Sweida, Damascus Says Truce Holding
Members of Internal Security Forces stand guard at an Internal Security Forces’ checkpoint working to prevent Bedouin fighters from advancing towards Sweida, following renewed fighting between Bedouin fighters and Druze gunmen, despite an announced truce, in Walgha, Sweida province, Syria, July 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Karam al-Masri
Residents reported calm in Syria’s Sweida on Sunday after the Islamist-led government announced that Bedouin fighters had withdrawn from the predominantly Druze city and a US envoy signaled that a deal to end days of fighting was being implemented.
With hundreds reported killed, the Sweida bloodshed is a major test for interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, prompting Israel to launch airstrikes against government forces last week as it declared support for the Druze. Fighting continued on Saturday despite a ceasefire call.
Interior Minister Anas Khattab said on Sunday that internal security forces had managed to calm the situation and enforce the ceasefire, “paving the way for a prisoner exchange and the gradual return of stability throughout the governorate.”
Reuters images showed interior ministry forces near the city, blocking the road in front of members of tribes congregated there. The Interior Ministry said late on Saturday that Bedouin fighters had left the city.
US envoy Tom Barrack said the sides had “navigated to a pause and cessation of hostilities”. “The next foundation stone on a path to inclusion, and lasting de-escalation, is a complete exchange of hostages and detainees, the logistics of which are in process,” he wrote on X.
Kenan Azzam, a dentist, said there was an uneasy calm but the city’s residents were struggling with a lack of water and electricity. “The hospitals are a disaster and out of service, and there are still so many dead and wounded,” he said by phone.
Another resident, Raed Khazaal, said aid was urgently needed. “Houses are destroyed … The smell of corpses is spread throughout the national hospital,” he said in a voice message to Reuters from Sweida.
The Syrian state news agency said an aid convoy sent to the city by the government was refused entry while aid organized by the Syrian Red Crescent was let in. A source familiar with the situation said local factions in Sweida had turned back the government convoy.
Israeli public broadcaster Kan reported on Sunday that Israel sent urgent medical aid to the Druze in Sweida and the step was coordinated with Washington and Syria. Spokespeople for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Foreign Ministry and the military did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Druze are a small but influential minority in Syria, Israel and Lebanon who follow a religion that is an offshoot of a branch of Shi’ite Islam. Some hardline Sunnis deem their beliefs heretical.
The fighting began a week ago with clashes between Bedouin and Druze fighters. Damascus sent troops to quell the fighting, but they were drawn into the violence and accused of widespread violations against the Druze.
Residents of the predominantly Druze city said friends and neighbours were shot at close range in their homes or in the streets by Syrian troops, identified by their fatigues and insignia.
Sharaa on Thursday promised to protect the rights of Druze and to hold to account those who committed violations against “our Druze people.”
He has blamed the violence on “outlaw groups.”
While Sharaa has won US backing since meeting President Donald Trump in May, the violence has underscored the challenge he faces stitching back together a country shattered by 14 years of conflict, and added to pressures on its mosaic of sectarian and ethnic groups.
COASTAL VIOLENCE
After Israel bombed Syrian government forces in Sweida and hit the defense ministry in Damascus last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had established a policy demanding the demilitarization of territory near the border, stretching from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights to the Druze Mountain, east of Sweida.
He also said Israel would protect the Druze.
The United States however said it did not support the Israeli strikes. On Friday, an Israeli official said Israel agreed to allow Syrian forces limited access to the Sweida area for two days.
A Syrian security source told Reuters that internal security forces had taken up positions near Sweida, establishing checkpoints in western and eastern parts of the province where retreating tribal fighters had gathered.
On Sunday, Sharaa received the report of an inquiry into violence in Syria’s coastal region in March, where Reuters reported in June that Syrian forces killed 1,500 members of the Alawite minority following attacks on security forces.
The presidency said it would review the inquiry’s conclusions and ensure steps to “bring about justice” and prevent the recurrence of “such violations.” It called on the inquiry to hold a news conference on its findings – if appropriate – as soon as possible.
The Syrian Network for Human Rights said on July 18 it had documented the deaths of at least 321 people in Sweida province since July 13. The preliminary toll included civilians, women, children, Bedouin fighters, members of local groups and members of the security forces, it said, and the dead included people killed in field executions by both sides.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, another monitoring group, has reported a death toll of at least 940 people.
Reuters could not independently verify the tolls.
The post Calm Reported in Syria’s Sweida, Damascus Says Truce Holding first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Pope Leo Calls for End to ‘Barbarity of War’ After Strike on Gaza Church
Pope Leo XIV leads the Angelus prayer in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, July 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Yara Nardi TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Pope Leo called for an end to the “barbarity of war” on Sunday as he spoke of his profound pain over an Israeli strike on the sole Catholic church in Gaza.
Three people died and several were injured, including the parish priest, in the strike on the Holy Family Church compound in Gaza City on Thursday. Photos show its roof has been hit close to the main cross, scorching the stone facade, and shattering windows.
Speaking after his Angelus prayer, Leo read out the names of those killed in the incident.
“I appeal to the international community to observe humanitarian law and respect the obligation to protect civilians as well as the prohibition of collective punishment, of indiscriminate use of force and forced displacement of the population,” he said.
The post Pope Leo Calls for End to ‘Barbarity of War’ After Strike on Gaza Church first appeared on Algemeiner.com.