“Last night, on the holiest night of the Jewish calendar, a shooting took place outside the Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Belleville,” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney posted on X on Monday. “Jewish people must be able to worship safely. To live free, open, proud Jewish.”
Ontario Premier Doug Ford said on social media that he was “disgusted” by the shooting and that members of the Jewish community “have every right to gather and worship safely and without fear.”
Police said they have not yet determined a motive for the attack or whether the synagogue or Jewish community were specifically targeted. When asked whether the incident was being considered a terrorist attack, SIU spokesperson Kristy Denette said that “common sense would say that probably was the case.”
Belleville Mayor Neil Ellis said it was still unclear whether the shooting was a hate crime. However, he added, “the circumstances are where it happened, when it happened,” which “points towards that.”
In a separate incident in the Durham Region, a municipality in Ontario, local police arrested a man who threatened to commit a shooting at a local synagogue, authorities announced on Monday. Alexander Parfitt, 19, was charged with threats motived by hate and still being held until his bail hearing.
Durham Regional Police Service (DRPS) said that on Friday, members of its Hate Crime Unit received information about threats posted online regarding a planned shooting at a synagogue in Durham Region. An investigation revealed that Parfitt was responsible for the online messages, and after obtaining a search warrant, police arrested the suspect on Saturday at his home in Whitby without incident.
“DRPS has increased its patrol around Jewish places of worship and community gather locations across Durham Region for the Jewish High Holidays,” the police force announced on Monday. “These proactive measures are intended to support public safety, provide reassurance to worshippers and visitors and help ensure they can observe these important occasions without concern … We recognize the significance of these religious observances and want the Jewish community to know that their safety and well-being remain a priority. Throughout the holiday period, officers will maintain an enhanced presence and continue working closely with community partners to help ensure a safe and welcoming environment for all.”
Meanwhile, in Toronto on Monday, anti-Israel protesters verbally assaulted Jews attending Yom Kippur prayer services at the Meridian Arts Centre, where The Song Shul had rented out a hall for High Holiday services. Jewish journalist Neil Herland shared footage on X of protesters by the entrance of the building who berated Jews trying to enter the venue for Yom Kippur prayers.
Protesters waved Palestinian flags, chanted “Free, free Palestine,” and held signs with anti-Israel messages. One activist announced on a loudspeaker a “Zionist alert” as Herland approached the building, while others told him “you’re going to hell,” booed at the journalist, and made offensive remarks.
“On Yom Kippur I went to a synagogue service in Toronto and was met by protesters trying to taunt and intimidate me from entering the building,” he wrote on X.
“Last night the cantor (singer) at the synagogue announced that his nephew was murdered on Rosh Hashana (the Jewish New Year) in Ukraine. In a suspected hate crime. And this morning the Toronto synagogue announced there had been an attack outside a synagogue in Belleville,” he added. “Jewish Canadians are living in a parallel world. Where police stand guard with guns outside synagogues. And Jewish schools, religious sites and businesses are targeted with bullets. And most Canadians have no awareness or understanding.”
Herland’s late father was an Austrian Jewish Holocaust survivor who moved to Canada as a refugee.
“This year I got an Austrian passport, in case Canada becomes unsafe for me as a Jew. I fear that moment is approaching, here in Canada and elsewhere,” he said.
The wave of Yom Kippur incidents came amid a surge in antisemitism across Canada.
According to B’nai Brith Canada’s Annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents for 2025, a record-breaking 6,800 anti-Jewish incidents were recorded last year, marking a 9.3 percent increase from the previous year and the highest number recorded since the audit began in 1982.
In July, the national statistical office of Canada revealed that more than 70 percent of religion-motivated hate crimes and 16.7 percent of all hate crimes reported to police in 2025 targeted Canadian Jews. Jews account for less than 1 percent of the population in Canada.
