Iranian Canadians and others watch and worry after U.S. strikes on nuclear sites

Iranian Canadians and Jewish organizations watched the situation in the Middle East with growing concern on Sunday, as U.S. airstrikes sparked fears of intensifying conflict.

Iranian Canadians and Jewish groups turned worried eyes to the Middle East on Sunday, as U.S. strikes against three Iranian nuclear sites raised fears of escalating violence.

Nimâ Machouf, a member of a Montreal Iranian women’s association, said family members in Iran are living “from one bomb to another.”

“I’m very worried because this will only accelerate the violence in the region,” she said in a phone interview. “It will further aggravate the problem and take us further away from peace.”

Machouf, who is also an epidemiologist and former NDP candidate, believes the strikes will only hurt the people who are fighting to free themselves from Iran’s repressive regime.

Attacks from other countries means that Iran’s people “are not protected by their government, nor protected by others, by the international community,” she said. “So people feel abandoned by everyone, everywhere.”

The United States inserted itself in Israel’s war against Iran early Sunday as it launched strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites.

Police in Toronto and Vancouver have published messages on social media platform X, confirming an increase in police presence in both cities while authorities monitor the situation in the Middle East.

The Toronto police post said that more police presence “can be expected wherever necessary,” while Vancouver police said more officers and resources will be deployed to “certain places of worships, cultural and community centres, and diplomatic buildings.”