SA Jewish Board of Deputies Condemns Yom Kippur Shooting Outside Belleville Synagogue

The South African Jewish Board of Deputies is shocked and horrified by the shooting outside the Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Belleville, Ontario, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish year. The attack left Constable Jeff Smith, who was stationed outside the synagogue to protect worshippers, critically injured, and we pray for his full and speedy recovery.

Tragically, this is not an isolated incident. Nor is it the first time Canadian Jewry has been targeted on the holiest day of the year: in 2024, gunfire hit the Bais Chaya Mushka girls’ school in North York during Yom Kippur. Across the globe, Jewish communities have suffered serious violence on this day of atonement and prayer, including the terror attack at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation in Manchester last year, in which two people were killed and three injured.

It is heartbreaking that Jewish communities continue to be subjected to such baseless and violent antisemitism, precisely when they are at their most vulnerable in prayer. We call on governments everywhere to take a firmer stand in protecting our communities, and we stand in solidarity with the Jewish community of Belleville and with Jews everywhere who are targeted simply for being Jewish.