A Jewish school in Toronto was hit with gunfire early Saturday morning, during Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar.
According to Toronto Police, the gunmen targeted the Bais Chaya Mushka Elementary School at 4:05 a.m. Saturday morning.
A suspect or suspects in a motor vehicle discharged a firearm at the school, Toronto Police said. There were no reports of injuries. Anyone with information has been asked to contact police.
This is the second time that the school has been hit by gunfire, after two gunmen opened fire on it in late May. No one was injured in that incident either.
Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center (FSWC) said in a statement on Saturday night that it is deeply disturbed by the incident, noting that no one was injured, but windows were broken.
FSWC said it has been in communication with the Toronto Police Service, which said the Hate Crime Unit is involved in the police investigation.
“Tragically, the reality of life for Jews in Canada now includes gunfire targeting our schools, metal detectors and armed police outside our synagogues, ongoing harassment of Jewish students on university campuses and terror-glorifying hate rallies on our city streets,” said FSWC President and CEO Michael Levitt.
“This is not just a Jewish problem, and Jews alone can’t fix it. Condemnations are appreciated but they are not nearly enough. Our leaders need to act decisively and urgently to address this grave situation before someone gets seriously hurt,” he added.
Toronto has seen an increase in anti-Israel riots and acts of antisemitism in the year that has passed since Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
In July, two synagogues in Toronto were attacked on the same day by vandals who threw rocks through the synagogues' windows.
The first incident occurred at the Pride of Israel Synagogue, where congregants were shocked to discover several windows shattered, holes in their stained glass and stones scattered onto the bimah.
In the second incident, a vandal threw a rock through the window of the Kehillat Shaarei Torah Synagogue. This synagogue had been targeted in similar attacks twice before that.
In January, a Jewish-owned grocery store in Toronto was spray-painted with the words “Free Palestine” and later set on fire.
Days later, Toronto police arrested four people on a highway overpass, located near a predominantly Jewish neighborhood, that has become the site of recurring pro-Palestinian Arab protests.
In February, an anti-Israel protest at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto turned into a display of antisemitism. At least one protester was documented scaling the hospital with a Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) flag.