Canadian Jewish leaders renewed calls for stronger action against antisemitism after a man allegedly attempted to set fire to a Montreal-area synagogue early on June 5.
Police responded shortly after midnight to Temple Emanu-El-Beth Sholom in Westmount, Quebec, after receiving a 911 call reporting a break-in. Authorities said a 38-year-old man broke a window and attempted to ignite a fire inside the synagogue before being arrested at the scene. The building sustained only minor damage and was unoccupied at the time.
“The safety of our residents, institutions and community gathering places remains a top priority for the city,” Westmount Mayor Michael Stern said following the incident.
In an email to congregants, Rabbi Lisa Grushcow urged community members to address the broader climate fueling antisemitic violence.
“Responding requires being proactive, not reactive,” she wrote. “Naming the ways in which external conflicts are being imported. Recognizing that while criticism of Israel can be legitimate, when the Jewish state and those who love it are libeled, violence against Jews is the result.”
Paola Samuel, B’nai Brith Canada’s regional director for Quebec and Atlantic Canada, stated that she had been in touch with law enforcement partners, urging them “to investigate the incident as an act of terrorism.”
“Incidents such as this are why we have been calling on the federal government to recognize that Canada is in a national crisis of antisemitism,” she said. “Hate motivated arson, vandalism and attacks should not be normal, and yet, they are becoming a daily reality for Jewish Canadians.”
“Words alone will not stop these repeated, antisemitic attacks,” she added.
The attempted arson came days after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney addressed antisemitism at a Toronto synagogue and announced the formation of a new advisory council that will investigate Jew-hatred in Canada.
Mark Miller, minister of Canadian identity and culture, who has been appointed chair of the new council, called the arson attack “horrific and shameful.”
“No Jewish person should have to fear practicing their faith or attending their place of worship,” he said. “I stand in solidarity with those affected by this vile antisemitic act.”
His response drew criticism from some Jewish community members. Lior Bibas, president of the Quebec Jewish Physicians Association, argued that expressions of solidarity were no longer sufficient.
“Canadian leadership has become incredibly weak,” Bibas wrote. “I know Jewish university students who have shown more courage, leadership and moral clarity over the past two years than many of our elected officials.”
The attempted arson is the latest attack on Temple Emanu-El-Beth Sholom, Canada’s oldest Reform synagogue, which was vandalized with swastika graffiti in 2025.
