A meeting to discuss increased security took place at a Montreal JCC hours before the building was hit by a Molotov cocktail. Courtesy of Montreal JCC

By Beth Harpaz November 27, 2023

A Molotov cocktail was thrown into the doorway of Montreal’s Jewish Community Center early Monday. 

The incident took place shortly after midnight, just hours after two members of Parliament attended a meeting in the building about increasing funding for security at Jewish institutions.

“Thank God, there were no injuries, just property damage,” the JCC’s executive director, Rabbi Saul Emanuel, said by phone. “People are concerned, schools are concerned, shuls are concerned. But the mood is very good, very positive. We’re not going to give up. They keep trying to come after us, but we won’t be intimidated.”

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More than 100 previous incidents

Montreal police said the incendiary device thrown at the JCC was the latest of more than 100 incidents since Oct. 7 against Jewish individuals, institutions or property. In the same period, Montreal’s Muslim and Arab community has been targeted in about three dozen incidents.

Previous incidents have included bullets fired at Jewish day schools and Molotov cocktails thrown at Congregation Beth Tikvah in the Montreal suburb of Dollard-des-Ormeau and at a nearby federation building. Clashes have also occurred at Concordia University between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel student groups. 

Emanuel said video surveillance was in place in a number of the sites that have been hit, but no arrests have been made and no information has been released about the number of individuals responsible.

The rabbi and other Jewish leaders are pressuring Montreal police to do more. “They may be investigating, but we’re not getting quick results,” he said. “They have a hate-crimes unit, but it’s not staffed sufficiently. We’re requesting more people.” 

He added: “They have a lot more work to do.”

Police spokesperson Melanie Bergeron said in an email that the agency had “stepped up its vigilance” with more officers on foot and in cars at houses of worship and other locations. “These officers are exclusively dedicated to this task,” she said.

The Montreal Gazette reported that lists of local Jewish-owned restaurants and other businesses are being circulated on TikTok and other social media platforms, ostensibly to encourage boycotts. But the news outlet said the lists have also resulted in vandalism, with some owners afraid to speak out publicly for fear of further reprisals.

Tapping into funding for security

Emanuel said the meeting that took place Sunday night was called to help the Jewish community tap into a longstanding federal program that pays for 50% of security measures — lighting, fencing, cameras, etc. — for vulnerable organizations.

“The government is trying to step up to the plate,” Emanuel said, “but they must give more support.”

Both members of Parliament who attended the meeting, Rachel Bendayan and Anthony Housefather, went on the social media platform X to express their dismay over the latest attack. “The fear is real and we will be there to support the security of the community,” Bendayan said. 

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also went on X to condemn the incident, saying, “These continued acts of antisemitic violence are deplorable and unacceptable — and must stop immediately. We must all stand united against such vile, hateful acts.”

About 94,000 Jews live in the Montreal area, making up a diverse community that includes Hasidim, modern Orthodox, Sephardim and “Yiddishkeit,” the rabbi said. “So many different individuals but we all get on so well together. The unity is amazing.”

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