The International Delicatessen Foods store, based in a predominantly Jewish neighborhood in Toronto, Canada, and reportedly owned by Jews of Russian origin, experienced a bomb attack, smashed windows and other vandalism at about 6 a.m. on Wednesday from a yet unknown assailant.
Firefighters put out the flames, and no one at the scene was injured.
“This is this tipping point,” said Pauline Gray, a spokesperson for the Toronto Police Service. “This is a criminal act. It is violent, it is targeted, it is organized.”
She said law enforcement would “leave no stone unturned” and “use all the resources available to us” in pursuit of prosecuting the perpetrator. Investigators have chosen to approach the case as a hate crime.
While the grocery store carries some Israeli products, it’s not focused on Jewish or kosher items. Instead, it bills itself as one of the city’s “first European delicatessen grocery stores.”
The initials of the store (IDF) are prominently displayed on the building, potentially misunderstood as a reference to the Israel Defense Forces.
