Jewish organizations in Canada receive bomb threats, police evacuate buildings

The buildings in Canada's Toronto were evacuated on Thursday after a wave of bomb threats arrived in the email inboxes of dozens of Canadian Jewish organisations, synagogues and hospitals.

Following the threats, buildings were evacuated and police began the investigation amid the surge in hate crimes.

B'nai Brith Canada, the oldest independent Jewish Human Rights organization in the country, along with other Canadian institutions, said that they received bomb threats this morning, which have been treated as a hate crime by the authorities.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

According to the B'nai Brith Canada, over 100 Jewish institutions received an identical e-mail at 5 am ET, threatening explosions.

“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.”

Canadian PM reacts to bomb threats

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeauon Thursday (Aug 22) shared a post on Xsaying that he is "disgusted" that over 100 Jewish institutions across the country were targeted by threats.

Calling it "blatant antisemitism", Trudeau said that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) is in contact with local law enforcement to investigate the situation further.

Richard Robertson, B’nai Brith Canada’s director of research and advocacy, said the email warned institutions that black backpacks, containing explosives, had been planted and would be set off in some hours.

"It’s incredibly disheartening and concerning for Jewish institutions across the country to wake up to a bomb threat saying an explosive device will be detonated at their institutions,” Robertson said.

Robertson added that the portion of the email read, "You all will end up in a pool of blood, none of you deserve to keep living."

The RCMP, in an email statement, said that they are working with local law enforcement, who are engaging with faith-based leaders to ensure locations are safe and secure, further ensuring support to the communities.

“We want to reassure the public that the safety and security of Canadians is our top priority,” RCMP said, adding that the Federal Policing National Security Program is investigating the source of the e-mails.

Chabad-Lubavitch of British Columbia also received the threats. Rabbi Dovid Rosenfeld, the organisation's director said that his local Jewish community is feeling on edge.

Watch |Gaza siege triggers rise in anti-antisemitism; France, Russia witness anti-Jew sentiment

Moreover, synagogues, Jewish community centres and hospitals in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa are among those that confirmed to receive the threat.

According to a list obtained by the Globe, the email was sent to at least 29 institutions in Ontario, 15 in British Columbia, 12 in Quebec, nine in Alberta, four in Manitoba, three in New Brunswick, two in Nova Scotia and one in Newfoundland and Labrador. Meanwhile, the other six recipients are in the US.

Such kinds of incidents have been rising in Canada since Israel retaliated on Gaza after the October 7 attack. Earlier in June, Toronto's deputy police chief Robert Johnson, said that antisemitism has accounted for nearly 45 per cent of 221 alleged hate crimes so far this year, more than any other country.

(With inputs from agencies)