‘A threat to all’: Community leaders call for more support after synagogue shootings
Written by The Canadian Press on March 8, 2026
TORONTO — Jewish community leaders say shots fired at two Toronto-area synagogues this weekend represent “a threat to all,” not just Jewish Canadians.
Sara Lefton of the United Jewish Appeal Federation of Greater Toronto says all levels of government need to provide rapid funding to secure Toronto’s Jewish communities from further violence.
Toronto police say bullet holes were found in the doors of the Shaarei Shomayim synagogue shortly after midnight Saturday, while minutes earlier, York Region Police say they responded to gunfire at the Beth Avraham Yoseph of Toronto synagogue in Thornhill.
The two shootings came less than a week after a third reported incident at Temple Emanu-El, another Toronto-area synagogue, where evidence of gunfire was found on Monday night.
No injuries were reported and police say they’ve stepped up patrols around Jewish neighbourhoods and places of worship as they continue to investigate the shootings.
News of the incidents on Saturday drew widespread condemnation as politicians and community leaders labelled the shootings as antisemitic attacks.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 8, 2026.
Kathryn Mannie, The Canadian Press