Anti-Semitic attacks now account for almost 45 per cent of all reported hate crimes in Toronto police said this week, while the city’s Muslim community is also combating serious threats to its safety.
Deputy Chief Robert Johnson told the Toronto Police Service Board on Monday that hate crime occurrences were up 54.9 per cent compared to the same period last year and that anti-Semitic attacks accounted for the majority of reports in 2024.
According to Johson, of the 221 hate crimes reported to police so far in 2024, 44.8 per cent were anti-Semitic.
Overall, since October 2023, police have confirmed 333 hate crimes leading to 107 arrests and 268 related charges.
In the same time frame, police attended 1,378 hate crime calls for service and responded to an average of 145 hate crime calls for service a month.
The most common charges laid are mischief and assault and uttering threats; 88 per cent of which were crimes against property, police said.
In order to combat the uptick in hate motivated incidents, particularly against Jewish and Muslim folk, police engaged liaison officers for both communities.
Since Hamas’s attack on Israeli citizens on October 7, police assigned to protect Toronto’s Jewish population have made 52 synagogue visits and 45 school visits and presentations, while officers for the Muslim community have delivered 109 school presentations and continue to attend multi-faith meetings with Jewish and Muslim organizations and community groups.
Toronto police also reported an increase in hate crimes in 2023.
The 2023 Annual Hate Crime Report identified a 47 per cent increase in the number of reported hate crimes from 248 in 2022 to 365 in 2023, police confirmed back in May.
Last year the Jewish community, with the 2SLGBTQ+ community, followed by the Black community and Muslim community, were the most frequently victimized groups, the 2023 report found.
Nicole Amiel, director, media relations and GTA communications, for the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs told Now Toronto in an email statement that Toronto’s Jewish community is becoming increasingly concerned by the sharp rise in anti-Semitism across the city.
“We are deeply troubled by the alarming figures recently reported on hate crimes targeting the Jewish community in Toronto. Last year alone, antisemitic incidents more than doubled compared to the previous year, with Jews victimized in 36 percent of these crimes despite comprising only 4 percent of the population,” Amiel wrote, before adding that 2024 data
“highlights a persistent and escalating trend since October 7.”
“This reality underscores the pervasive nature of anti-Jewish hate in Canadian society, creating an atmosphere of fear and discomfort in our workplaces, schools, and streets. Immediate and decisive action is urgently needed to address this concerning escalation,” Amiel concluded.
Similarly, Fatema Abdalla, an Advocacy Officer for the National Council of Canadian Muslims told Now Toronto that since October 7, the organization has seen a 1,300 per cent rise in hate crimes reported to it, which it believes accounts for only one third of all hate crimes committed against Canadian Muslims following the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war.
“These are hate incidents that are taking place in schools, in public spaces or or even at people’s places of work and of worship,” Abdalla said.
“We have seen the stress rise, and the community is definitely very frightened. We’re asking for real change. There’s so much that needs to happen, and that’s what we’re calling for,” Abdalla continued.
Crimes reported to the national council range from being spat on for wearing a hijab in public, to being sprayed with bear spray and being refused entry onto a bus for wearing a keffiyeh, violent attacks in schools, vandalism at mosques and bomb threats at community hubs.
Abdalla also explained that many members of the community have lost trust and confidence in the police since October 7, and have reported being brutally handled at peaceful protests.
“The community just got to a place where they feel a sense of distress around the police…our community will come to us in a place of trust and will tell us that they’re not comfortable enough to share this with the Toronto police because they don’t think that anything will get done,” Abdalla told Now Toronto.
“It’s very important for us to continue to work together to fight all forms of hate,” she concluded.
Call 416-808-2222 to report a hate-motivated crime.
