Toronto synagogue faces ongoing vandalism, seventh attack in months

A Toronto synagogue was vandalized for the seventh time since April on Sunday night, the synagogue and the Toronto Police Service (TPS) reported.

Large anti-Israel decals reading “genocide” were placed on the Jewish National Fund and United Jewish Appeal Federation of Greater Toronto signs on the property of Kehillat Shaarei Torah, said Michael Gilmore, the synagogue’s executive director. The perpetrator later returned to photograph what he had done, he said.

Kehillat Shaarei Torah's windows and doors were smashed with hammers on April 19 and May 17. On June 30, a motorcyclist threw rocks through the windows of Kehillat Shaarei Torah and the Pride of Israel synagogue.

Kehillat Shaarei Torah’s signs were set on fire by a motorcyclist on July 31, Gilmore said. They had been replaced after they were previously spray-painted. A dead raccoon had been placed on the synagogue’s grounds, he said.

“Despite these acts of antisemitism and hate, our community has remained united in love and support for one another, with our moral convictions stronger than ever,” Gilmore told The Jerusalem Post. “There is a strong attempt in Canada to scare Jewish people away from our institutions and to feel isolated and alone. That’s how they think they can eliminate us, but we are not going anywhere.”

Repeated issues of antisemtism in Toronto

Other Toronto synagogues have also been targeted by vandals with arson and stoning. Jewish schools have also been targeted in the swell of antisemitic incidents since the October 7 massacre.

Mathilda Heller and the Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report.