A Pro-Palestinian group targeted a kosher grocery store in the community of Thornhill on Canada Day (July 1). Thornhill is part of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). The group, Canadian Defenders for Human Rights (CD4HR), was reported by Jerusalem Post to be on the hunt for “former leader of the Canadian JDL,” Jewish Defense League, Meir Weinstein, whom they were expecting to be in the kosher plaza area. Aliya Hasan, who led the protest, spun the reaction to the targeting of the kosher store as “Islamophobia,” stating that it was “a peaceful protest by pro-Palestinians in response to serious threats made by FBI-designated terrorist organization, the JDL [Jewish Defense League] towards the Muslim community.”
So what exactly was the “threat”? As reported by the Jerusalem Post:
According to CD4HR, Weinstein had threatened to protest the 2022 Muslim Association of Canada Convention, which was being held from July 1 to July 3. MAC had invited several speakers who had previously expressed pro-terrorist and anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric.
I reached out to Meir Weinstein for a statement. He wrote back to me:
For the past 2 months, my new group Israel Now has been monitoring and exposing the speakers for the Muslim Association of Canada Conference. On Friday July 1st, we noticed that Palestine flags were at the entrance to the conference. Shortly after the start of the conference, some supporters of the conference left the conference to harass members of the Jewish Community in Thornhill who were doing shopping for Shabbat. This group from the conference started shouting antisemitism at the Jewish shoppers. I received several phone calls about this, so I decided to go to this plaza. And I witnessed vile antisemitism from these conference supporters.
The National Post published an article about the MAC conference: “The Liberals are funding hate. How else to describe the speakers at this Toronto convention?” I wrote more about it for Jihad Watch HERE.
CD4HR has a notable history of spewing hatred against Jews and Israel. It previously claimed that rabbis who support Israel are a “danger” to Canada. In 2019, CD4HR posted a series of hateful tirades against Toronto Rabbi Mendel Kaplan, the founder and spiritual leader of Chabad@Flamingo in Thornhill, who is an ardent supporter of Israel. The scorching personal attacks were eyebrow-raising enough in themselves, but the attacks against the State of Israel further exposed the organization’s Islamic anti-Semitism. CD4HR attempted to rewrite history and strip Israel of its ancient heritage — despite archeological evidence — and supplant it with “holy Palestine.”
Only six months ago, B’nai Brith Canada demanded that CD4HR be dissolved “after it organized a vigil endorsing terrorist groups” and called for death to America. CD4HR and its founder Firas al-Najim organized a small rally outside the U.S. Consulate in downtown Toronto to commemorate the death in a U.S. strike of Qasem Soleimani, the head of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Quds Force.
Al-Najim delivered an Arabic-language speech at the event, which has been translated by B’nai Brith Canada. Al-Najim promised: “We will continue fighting alongside… Hamas in Palestine and Hezbollah in Lebanon,” before leading the crowd in a highly disturbing chorus of “Death to America!” in both Arabic and Farsi.
Although CD4HR spreads hate and propaganda against Jews, provoking the latter at every turn, it has remained free to continue its intimidation tactics and stir pro-Palestinian hatred, despite Canada’s hate laws.
The protests at Thornhill prompted a tweet from a Thornhill Member of Parliament, Melissa Lantsman:
As is routine with Islamic supremacist trouble makers, CD4HR claimed “Islamophobia” and accused Lantsman of lying.
Since the Jerusalem Post article mentions the JDL’s label as “terrorist,” it is worth noting some of its history. The JDL was founded in 1968 in Brooklyn by Rabbi Meir Kahane in order to “protect Jews against antisemitism.” Kahane “later founded the Kach Party in Israel.” Kahane’s fervor made him controversial. He was assassinated in 1990 in New York by jihadist El Sayyid Nosairan, who had links to al-Qaeda. The Jerusalem Post reported this last year about Kahane:
His assassination is considered by many to be the first act of Islamic terrorism on US soil. * His legacy and that of his ideology remains strong and controversial to this day.
Nosairan originally planned to kill Ariel Sharon, according to a leaked US government document. Even so, Nosairan was at first acquitted of Kahane’s murder, but “the judge, who disagreed with the murder acquittal, sentenced Nosair to the maximum 22 years on the gun conviction.” Nosair finally admitted what he had done and explained his plans:
He added that on the night he shot Kahane dead, he was accompanied by two co-conspirators to the Marriot Hotel in Manhattan where Kahane was speaking – one of whom was also carrying a gun. The men, Bilal al-Kaisi of Jordan and Mohammed Salameh, a Palestinian illegal alien later involved in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, have never been charged for their part in the slaying.
In jail, Nosairan “was hailed a martyr by supporters carrying placards outside the courthouse. Many were followers of Osama bin Laden, who contributed $20,000 for Nosair’s defense.” Nosairan later went on to help plan the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center from behind bars.
Yet despite the ongoing hate directed at Jews and jihadist threat against them, the public is repeatedly reminded in soundbites about the terrorism label that was affixed to the Jewish Defense League in the U.S. (and since removed), while at the same time, the Islamic jihad is downplayed or ignored outright.
In the Greater Toronto Area, Palestinian antisemitic propaganda even made its way to the Toronto District School Board last December. Read about it HERE. Although it was stymied (for now) because of an unprecedented backlash, including a rare statement from the Toronto Board of Rabbis, there was no followup indication of any accountability on the part of the pro-Palestinian players.
The Palestinian jihad (aka the “resistance”) — which has expanded into a global movement that fans the flames of rage and violence — repeatedly gets a pass. A familiar cycle of antisemitism followed by screams of victimhood and “Islamophobia” will continue to escalate, as it does everywhere.
“Pro-Palestinians, pro-Israelis clash on Canada Day at kosher stores,” by Michael Start, Jerusalem Post, July 4, 2022:
Canadian supporters of Israel and Palestinians clashed in Thornhill, Canada on Friday, in front of a shopping plaza with mainly Kosher stores.
Melissa Lantsman, Member of Parliament representing Thornhill claimed that pro-Palestinian protestors gathered at the plaza and harassed Jewish shoppers. Video shared by the MP shows protestors waving Israeli flags and chanting slogans in front of the shops.
“Protesters screaming ‘free Palestine,’ yelling antisemitic slurs and intimidating Jews in Thornhill outside a plaza of mainly kosher establishments,” Lantsman tweeted. “This is not anti-Zionism —it’s a blatant act of antisemitic hate which must be condemned by everyone.”
“You don’t come to a Jewish neighborhood and yell anti-Semitic tropes if it isn’t about hating Jews.”
MP Melissa Lantsman
One video shared by the NGO Stop Antisemitism showed pro-Palestinian protestors shouting “Shabbat shalom b*****s.”
“This occurred during a peaceful protest by pro-Palestinians in response to serious threats made by FBI-designated terrorist organization, the JDL [Jewish Defense League] towards the Muslim community.”
Accusations of Islamophobia and threats
Aliya Hasan, leader of the group that led the protests, Canadian Defenders for Human Rights (CD4HR), shared videos on her Instagram claiming that the pro-Palestinian protestors were threatened and cussed with Islamophobic comments by shoppers and shopkeepers. They claimed that Lantsman was lying about the confrontation.
“This occurred during a peaceful protest by pro-Palestinians in response to serious threats made by FBI-designated terrorist organization, the JDL [Jewish Defense League] towards the Muslim community,” wrote Hasan.
In the videos, one man threatened that he would find them and had taken pictures of their license plates. A shop owner called the pro-Palestinian protestors “terrorists.” One man involved in the incident was alleged to be JDL Canada branch former leader Meir Weinstein.
York Police intervened in the heated shouting matches, arresting one of the pro-Palestinian activists.
Seeking an enemy
Firas al Najim, who joined the protests, said in a July 2 Instagram video that the group had gone to the plaza after learning through social media that Weinstein was there.
According to CD4HR, Weinstein had threatened to protest the 2022 Muslim Association of Canada Convention, which was being held from July 1 to July 3. MAC had invited several speakers who had previously expressed pro-terrorist and anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric….
The protestors said in a post that they had gone to the Enercare Centre, to counter-protest, but Weinstein’s group never arrived. CD4HR posted a video taunting Weinstein’s Israel Now group, prior to their pursuit of Weinstein almost 20 kilometers away to the Chabad Gate plaza.
The backlash to the protest
“You don’t come to a Jewish neighborhood and yell antisemitic tropes if it isn’t about hating Jews,” Lantsman said of the incident.
July 1 was Canada Day, the national holiday of Canada, and fell on Friday — when Jews prepare for Shabbat.
“Jewish Canadians have been in this country since 1760. We are incredibly proud Canadians and Canada Day is our national holiday,” MP Anthony Housefather tweeted. “To do something like this on Canada Day is especially offensive.”….
mortimer says
Muslims who join a mob that demeans, degrades and denounces supposed ‘enemies of Islam’ are devout, ‘good’ Muslims who are ‘commanding the right and forbidding the wrong’. They are authorized by Sharia law to engage in slander, reviling speech, vandalism and physical assault as long as they can get away with it and not get caught. That is ‘honorable’ according to Sharia law and commendable.
That’s why reliable security guards are needed against Sharia-law enforcers.
When Muslims see anything that contradicts Sharia law, they are required to use first persuasion, then domineering words, then reviling harsh words, vandalism, intimidating threats , physical assault and even armed attacks to enforce Sharia law. To fail to do those things (in that order) would be sinful. Enforcing Sharia law is the central mission of all Muslims. This intimidating mob of Muslims consider themselves as enforcers of divine law with a divine permission to vandalize and even kill if they can get away with it.
RoT Chapter Q5.1-8
The Act of Censuring q5.0
Degrees of Severity q5.1
Knowledge of the wrong act q5.2
Explaining that something is wrong q5.3
Forbidding the act verbally q5.4
Censuring with harsh words q5.5
Righting the wrong by hand q5.6
Intimidation q5.7
Assault q5.8
Force of arms q5.9
mortimer says
Reviling KAFIRS is normative Islam, rather than an aberration. Muslims who REVILE Jews innocently shopping for groceries are FULFILLING a requirement of SHARIA LAW:
Q5.5: Cencuring with Harsh Words
The fourth degree of severity consists of REVILING the person and BEARING DOWN on him with SHARP, HARSH words. One does not resort to this degree unless one is unable to prevent the person by politeness, and he shows he wants to persist or mocks one’s admonitions and advice. Reviling him does not mean vulgarity and lies, but rather saying “You degenerate,” “You idiot “You ignoramus,” “Do you not fear Allah?” and so forth. Allah Most high quotes Ibrahim (upon whom be peace) saying:
“Fie on you and what you worship apart from Allah! Can you not think?” (Koran 21.67).
But in fact, Mohammed used vulgarity and lewdness to revile his foes and commanded Muslims to do so as well.
From Sharia law:
“And in the words of Abu Bakr As-Sideeq to ‘Urwah: “Suck Al-Lat’s clitoris!” – there is a permissibility of speaking plainly the name of the private parts if there is some benefit to be gained thereby, just as he [Muhammad] permitted a plain response to the one who made the claims of the Jahiliyyah (i.e. claims of tribal superiority), by saying: “Bite your father’s penis!”[3] And for every situation there is a (fitting) saying. (Provisions for the Hereafter (MukhtasarZad Al-Ma’ad), by Imam IbnQayyim Al-Jawziyyah, summarized by Imam Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahhab At-Tamimi [Darussalam Publishers & Distributors, First Edition: September 2003], Chapter. Regarding the Story of Al-Hudaibiyyah, p. 383).
mortimer says
In case you wondered about the spelling, “Q5.5: Cencuring with Harsh Words” is written thus in the Reliance of the Traveller, a manual of Sharia published in Pakistan.
VICTORMc. says
Mortimer,
Who on earth cares what some nonentity who probably did not ever exist said in the 6th century or something.
STOP giving credence to this rubbish. Words taken from real pre-history pre-printing etc… are notoriously rubbish and should never be taken seriously by educated people and ALL others. STOP IT.
Dean says
Canada is ruled by people who think that Islamism is a special group that must be protected from those who tell the truth about the actual beliefs and words contained in their books regarding Infidels and Jews and Christians, etc.
If one dares to point out the truth in Canada on many fronts, you are considered a deplorable or an Islamophobe..and our PM will go to lengths to insult you publicly and put you in jail in vengeful ways to scapegoat you – just ask Tamara Lich.
Jewish people in Toronto, except for a small percentage who have been fighting the hateful mob for many years, largely buy into the Lib-NDP politics and because they have never bothered to see these protests by Jew-hating people on campuses and in the community, they think that the threat is being exaggerated.
The press always presents Islamists in a positive light and as pillars of the community but they never show (some of) them as haters who would tear Jewish people to bits according to their beliefs and the propaganda education they receive from birth.
There are some Muslims who warn government about what the hate-filled violent majority but leftists do not want to hear it and these apostates as kooks who are then sidelined and denigrated and silenced.
It is time for Jewish organizations to work with Conservatives and people who understand the issues and not the Bfarberites who hate Conservatives and prevent society from addressing these issues because they are so busy promoting their own political left-wing agendas.
E T says
But, but, but aw aw the police were too busy on Canada Day – – after all they had to show up in large numbers to “police” the “minority fringe” who hold unacceptable views, you know, the anti-Vaccine haters, misogynistic, racists, vermin, white trash plaque rats who are barely tolerated. They were so busy running their wands up and dow everyone trying to enter the people’s grounds. They even had to check little toddlers – the poor overwhelmed brown shirts. Everyone knows, even Klaus Schwab’s peoplekind know they look like little darlings but, but, but, aw aw they are a THREAT to Justine’s Canada, the little buggers might have been wearing suicide vests right?
Leave the poor friend’s of Justine alone, it’s the filthy Infidels who are the problem, they have NOT aw aw aw “done the right thing” and they, the resisters, aw aw aw “won’t get to enjoy the same freedoms”.
Now, now Christine, don’t you try our little dictator’s patience too far, you will be locked away for treason or at the least insubordination.