The scheduling of dual demonstrations—one directed at a weekend gathering of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the other a weekly protest against Israel in support of Palestine—converged at Montreal’s convention centre early Friday night, resulting in a fiery riot scene.
Montreal police (SPVM) confirmed three arrests for assaulting police officers, vandalism-related offences and obstruction during the skirmishes.
It began when a demonstration organized by the Convergence des luttes anticapitalistes (CLAC)—which was protesting a parliamentary NATO meeting of about 300 international delegates in Montreal—merged with a protest by Collective for Disinvestment for Palestine outside Place des Arts. The assembly then moved to Palais des Congrès, one kilometre south.
Some of the crowd smashed windows of businesses along the way. Violence and destruction escalated at the Palais with windows and doors struck with concrete blocks, hammers, garbage cans and other items, fire set to at least two parked vehicles, smoke bombs being set up, and police and bystanders being doused with paint.
Protesters carried banners and chanted slogans in English, French and Arabic—and after an SPVM van circulated with a recorded message booming from the loudspeakers, warning demonstrators to disperse or be forced to do so, the SPVM riot squad used batons and pepper spray to disperse rioters, some of whom sprayed paint on police, media and passersby.
One officer was treated for injuries, according to the SPVM.
The unrest ended almost as abruptly as it began, with the crowd leaving shortly after 7 p.m., leaving behind a trail of paint, broken windows, burned cars, upturned trash cans, vandalized businesses, graffiti, and a torched puppet representing Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
It all took place a little more than 24 hours after a mob of demonstrators forced their way into Concordia University’s downtown Hall building and briefly occupied the lobby during widespread student strikes across Quebec on Nov. 21, where some people were filmed performing Nazi salutes and warning Jewish counter-demonstrators of the coming “final solution”, and others flashed Hamas symbols.
(Subsequent identification of a Second Cup associate based at Jewish General Hospital spotted making hateful remarks and gestures during the Thursday protest led the café chain to announce on Saturday that it has terminated a franchise agreement involving said individual, who was widely named in social media postings as Mai Abdulhadi.)
“The violent and hateful scenes we witnessed last night in the streets of Montreal, with attacks specifically targeting the Jewish community, are unacceptable” Premier François Legault posted on Saturday morning. “Burning cars and ransacking windows is not a message, it is causing chaos. Such acts have no place in a peaceful society such as Quebec.”
Montreal mayor Valérie Plante posted on social media Saturday morning that the “outbursts during the demonstration” were unacceptable and thanked the SPVM for restoring order, which garnered a torrent of criticism over her perceived failure to enforce injunctions which were defied in full view of the SPVM last month and the chaos at Concordia a day earlier.
Justin Trudeau was equally blasted on social media Friday night as videos circulated of the prime minister attending Taylor Swift’s concert in Toronto while the city he represents in parliament was subject to another evening of violence, vandalism and general unrest.
“What we saw on the streets of Montreal last night was appalling” Trudeau’s account subsequently posted. “Acts of antisemitism, intimidation, and violence must be condemned wherever we see them. The RCMP are in communication with local police. There must be consequences, and rioters held accountable.”
Condemnations were broadcast by other political figures on Saturday—with a particular focus on the anti-Israel aspects of the demonstration.
