Toronto mayor calls for Israel-Hamas ceasefire, hate crime unit investigating vandalism
CBC
Toronto's mayor is appealing for calm and calling for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict Friday as Toronto police's hate crime unit investigates a vandalism incident at a downtown Indigo store.
This comes after weeks of protests in the city's streets, alongside a rise in tensions on university and college campuses, amid the ongoing bombardment of the Gaza Strip following Hamas's attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7.
Many GTA rallies have called for a ceasefire to stop the climbing death toll — a sentiment Mayor Olivia Chow shared in a statement Friday. You can read Chow's full statement at the bottom of this story.
"All my life I have been an advocate for peace. I will always choose hope and compassion. I believe that violence is never the answer," Chow said.
"I believe that peace can only come through the immediate and unconditional return of all hostages and a ceasefire, as has been called for by humanitarian organizations, including the United Nations."
Chow also lauded Toronto's diversity as a common bond, but noted many people in the city are struggling right now.
"In talking with Muslim and Jewish communities over recent weeks, I've heard their worries and their fears. I've heard how deeply people are grieving and how unsafe they feel right now," she said.
In that vein, Toronto police confirmed to CBC News Friday that investigators are aware of vandalism at an Indigo bookstore near the intersection of Bay and Bloor Streets, and the force's hate crime unit is investigating.
Images circulating on social media Friday showed red paint splashed on the front of the business, as well as posters that the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies (FSWC) said amount to "hateful targeting of its Jewish CEO," Heather Reisman.
"It is absolutely appalling to see this targeting of an Indigo store and its Jewish founder and CEO in a vile antisemitic attack," said FSWC president and CEO Michael Levitt in a statement. "The fact that it occurred on the 85th anniversary of Kristallnacht, when thousands of Jewish businesses were vandalized and destroyed in a Nazi-led pogrom in Germany and Austria just before the Holocaust, makes it even more painful to witness.
"Sadly, this is the tragic, new reality for Jews today in Canada and around the world which requires more than just condemnations from government leaders."
Here's Chow's full statement:
For over a month, the world has been watching the unfolding situation in Israel and Gaza in shock and horror at the growing number of lives lost and lives torn apart.
What the terrorist organization Hamas did on Oct. 7 was horrific and there's no justification for it. The continued bombing of Palestinians in Gaza is unbearable. No one should live under constant threat of violence, or be denied the necessities of life.