A Jewish school in Montreal was hit by gunfire, according to local media, marking the Canadian city’s third such attack in less than a week amid heightened tensions over the conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas.
No one was injured when the facade of Yeshiva Gedola of Montreal was struck early on Sunday. Bullet marks and shells were found after residents heard gunfire, CBC News in Canada reported.
Police on Thursday said they were investigating overnight shootings at two Jewish schools in the Côte-des-Neiges neighbourhood after staff reported finding bullet holes in the front doors.
It was unclear if the incidents at Jewish schools in the city’s west end were related.
On Wednesday, a violent altercation at Concordia University in Montreal between people aligned with opposing sides of the Gaza conflict resulted in injuries and an arrest.
Administrators said that the university, like others, has witnessed “a concerning rise in acts of intimidation and intolerant behaviour” that had left students in fear.
The Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau, has condemned the violence.
“I know emotions are high, and people are scared. But attacking each other is not who we are as Canadians,” Trudeau said on Thursday.
“If anywhere in the world is going to start building the kinds of understandings that we’re going to need to see peaceful resolution in the Middle East … it starts in a place like Canada.”
The Israel-Gaza war has sharply divided Canada, with a growing number of people calling for a ceasefire.
In Toronto, police said that in the three weeks after the initial Hamas attack on 7 October, hate crimes against Jews and Muslims were more than double the entire number in 2022.
