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A man smashed a window at Temple Emanu-El-Beth Sholom in Montreal, Quebec, on Thursday night and tried to start a fire inside the synagogue.
The city’s main Reform congregation sustained minor damage, and no one was injured. Police arrested a 38-year-old suspect, identified as Steven Luu.
The incident marked the second attack on the synagogue in the past year and a half. Vandals defaced the building with antisemitic graffiti in February 2025.
Rabbi Lisa Grushcow called on congregants to confront what she described as “the scourge of antisemitism.”
“Responding requires being proactive, not reactive,” she wrote in an email. “Politicians need courage. Law enforcement needs support. Neighborhoods need good neighbors.”
The arson attack comes amid rising concerns over rising antisemitism across Canada. According to government data, 70% of the 1,342 religion-based hate crimes reported in Canada in 2024 targeted Jews, who comprise only 1% of the country’s population.
Earlier this week, U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism Ambassador Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun accused the Canadian government of showing a “lack of seriousness” in addressing the the issue.
Canada’s replacement of an antisemitism envoy position with “rights, equality, and inclusion” reflects the lack of seriousness with which they have treated Jewish Canadians. By contrast, the U.S is putting results over politically correct pieties. https://t.co/KjnPxLWLV1
— Ambassador Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun (@StateSEAS) June 5, 2026
Read more:
Drive-By Attacker Uses Gel Pellet Gun to Target Jewish Passersby in Toronto
‘Antisemitism Is a Fundamental Attack on Western Values and the Values We Hold Dear in Canada’
Take Action
CAM has launched Report It, a secure app to report antisemitic incidents anonymously and in real time. Don’t stay silent. Download it today on the Apple App Store or Google Play. See it. Report it. Stop it.
