Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.
VANCOUVER – Members of Vancouver’s Jewish community say they are meeting the anniversary of the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel that sparked their ongoing war with deep sadness and lingering unease.
Multiple police and at least one police dog were posted outside the Talmud Torah School on Oak Street as parents dropped off their children.
Allie Saks, who has two children at Talmud Torah, broke down in tears as she described October 7 as “a day of mourning” saying it was difficult to drop a child off at school where they have to “see the police before them.”
Rabbi Andrew Rosenblatt of nearby Schara Tzedeck Synagogue says the Oct. 7 attack and the community’s response are “a little like the 9/11 anniversary,” referring to the 2001 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington.
The synagogue was the scene of an arson attack in May which blackened the doors of the temple.
Rosenblatt says the silver lining has been the response of most Canadians in the past year, and that people are “rediscovering how important it is to feel close and intimate with the Jewish community.”
A Hamas attack on October 7, 2023 in Israel killed around 1,200 people while around 250 more were taken hostage.
It sparked an Israeli counteroffensive in the Hamas-held Gaza Strip that the territory’s health ministry says has left more than 41,000 Palestinians dead, and the hostilities have since spilled into nearby Lebanon.
About a hundred of the hostages taken by Hamas in the October 7 attack have not been returned.
In a post on social media platform X, BC NDP Leader David Eby says the province’s residents still deeply feel “the pain and sadness” of October 7 and “stand firm against violence and its glorification. “
Meanwhile, BC Conservative Leader John Rustad condemned the attack and the “celebration of the massacre of the Jews and the glorification of terrorist organizations” by some local protesters and called for immediate action to tackle those who “calling for violence against minority communities, especially Jews. “
Provincial Green Leader Sonia Furstenau also issued a written statement, saying party members “are committed to the safety of all British Columbians and stand firm against hate of all kinds.”
Vancouver Police have said they are deploying additional officers at faith schools and places of worship today.
Among the groups planning rallies and events on Monday is the pro-Palestinian group Samidoun, which is promoting its events on social media by referring to the October 7 attacks as the “Al-Aqsa Flood,” Hamas’ code name for the operation.
Samidoun says the events will include “learning in” about the campaign and a rally at the Vancouver Art Gallery on Monday, as well as attending an Oct. 8 court appearance that the group says will be made by Samidoun’s organizer, Charlotte Kates.
Director Samidoun Kates was arrested last year in a hate crime investigation after praising the October 7 attack as “heroic and brave” in a speech at a rally.
This report was first published by The Canadian Press on October 7, 2024.
(Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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