Two synagogues and Chabad building in Halifax, Canada, targeted with antisemitic graffiti
The vandalism came days after hundreds gathered in the city to protest a tennis match against Israel
Antisemitic graffiti on Shaar Shalon synagogue and Beth Israel synagogue in Halifax, Nova Scotia was discovered Sunday morning. Courtesy of Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs
(JTA) — Three synagogues in Halifax, Nova Scotia, were defaced with antisemitic graffiti over the weekend, following a contentious period in the Canadian city over an athletic match that included the Israeli team.
Beth Israel Synagogue and a building associated with the Chabad-Lubavitch of the Maritimes had the phrase “Jews did 9/11” written on them with spray paint. Another synagogue on the same street as Beth Israel, Shaar Shalom, had a swastika spray-painted on its signage.
“The targeting of synagogues in Halifax with antisemitic graffiti is absolutely disgraceful. We are better than this as a province,” said Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston in a post on X.
The graffiti came days after hundreds gathered outside the Davis Cup tennis competition in Halifax to protest Israel’s participation in the match against Canada. The match was held Friday behind closed doors, with no spectators or media allowed due to safety concerns.
“Whether intimidating sports fans, threatening elected officials, or targeting people at their places of worship, this is absolutely unacceptable in Canada — an assault on our core Canadian values,” wrote Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs CEO Noah Shack and Atlantic Jewish Council executive director Yoram Abisror in a post on X.
Halifax Regional Police released a photo of a man suspected of writing the antisemitic graffiti in a post on Facebook Monday, adding that the individual had also defaced nearby sidewalks three separate times.
The incidents are being investigated as hate crimes, and police are conducting “extra patrols” at local synagogues and religious buildings, according to the post.
“Directing hate to an entire section of our community is against the law, but most importantly, it does not represent the views of our city,” said Halifax Regional Police Chief Don MacLean in a statement. “The loudest voices are not always rooted in wisdom, fact or truth.”
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
