VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — The Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver said Friday that an “incendiary device” was thrown at the front doors of a synagogue in what Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called a “disgusting act of anti-Semitism.”
Vancouver police said the case is being investigated as an act of arson and possible hate crime.
The federation said in a statement that the incident took place at the Schara Tzedeck Synagogue around 9:30 PM on Thursday and that damage was minor and no one was injured.
The federation calls the alleged incident a “deliberate act of hatred” and an “attempt to intimidate the Jewish community.”
Rabbi Andrew Rosenblatt said people were in the synagogue after services on Thursday around 9:20 p.m. when they heard a “bang” outside.
But it was a passerby who alerted them that their building was on fire before a synagogue member doused the flames with his jacket, Rosenblatt said, pointing to the scorched front door Friday morning.
The federation said Vancouver police and a fire inspector searched the building before it was declared safe for reopening. Additional police patrols are deployed at local Jewish institutions.
The incident comes after bullet holes were found in two Jewish schools in Montreal and Toronto in recent days.
“A Vancouver synagogue was attacked last night in another disgusting act of anti-Semitism,” Trudeau said on X, formerly known as Twitter. “We cannot allow this hatred or these acts of violence to continue. This is not the Canada we want to be.”
