Toronto police will be deploying three mobile command units in Jewish neighbourhoods as well as increasing the numbers of plainclothes and uniformed officers as the High Holidays and the anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel approach.
“As tensions rise around the world and we approach the one-year anniversary of Oct. 7 we know world events always have an impact here at home. This includes the potential for increased protest activity and acts of violence,” Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw said at a news conference Oct. 2.
Since Oct. 7, police have managed more than 1,500 demonstrations. Police have made 72 arrests related to protests.
Hate crimes have also increased substantially over the year, as well, with the Jewish community bearing the brunt of the increase. To date, 350 hate crimes have been reported to the Hate Crime Unit, an increase of 40 percent over the same period last year. Hate crimes against the Jewish community have grown by 69 percent.
The cost of Project Resolute, the police response to the demonstrations and incidents triggered by events in the Middle East, now stands at $20 million, the chief said.
Police mobile command units will be stationed along Bathurst Street, at Glencairn, Sheppard and Finch Avenues. A fourth unit will be deployed to city mosques.
Smaller command units, the size of vans, have been developed and will be visible as well.
Police are stepping up patrols, not solely because of the impending anniversary and the holidays, but based on what has occurred throughout the year, the chief said.
“Our city has seen, as have many cities across the Western world, has seen rising tensions and a considerable rise of antisemitism,” Demkiw said.
“We’ve also seen arrests in the Greater Toronto Area related to the national security space recently. I’m listening to our communities and they’re very, very concerned about what’s going on and what could happen.”
In July, RCMP arrested two men in Richmond Hill, Ont., who were “in the advanced stages of planning a serious, violent attack in Toronto.” The men, who are from Egypt but were Canadian citizens, face charges of participation in the activities of a terrorist group and conspiracy to commit murder.
Protests have also become “increasingly confrontational”, with assaults on officers, including weapons and physical attacks, Demkiw said.
Toronto Police Services (TPS) announced two more arrests related to assaults on officers at protests later on Oct. 2, in separate media releases related to separate demonstrations: One on Sept. 11, outside the UJA Federation of Greater Toronto fundraising event at Meridian Hall, and another on Oct. 1, at a demonstration on University Ave. near the US Consulate.
Police arrested a 29-year-old man from the Sept. 11 Meridian Hall incident for allegedly obstructing the arrest of another demonstrator, who allegedly assaulted an officer after police had formed a line to block protesters attempting to get in. At the Oct. 1 demonstration, TPS arrested a 28-year-old woman they allege approached an officer from behind and struck her with a bicycle, injuring the leg of the woman officer.
Arrests can occur at any time after an offense, Chief Demkiw warned.
A woman was arrested Sept. 30 at Pearson International Airport for offences related to demonstrations in November and March, while she was trying to leave the country.
Police arrested the 29-year-old man in connection with the Sept. 11 demonstration at Meridian Hall when he was spotted in a crowd at a demonstration Oct. 1.
“Our expanded Hate Crime Unit continues to investigate every reported instance of hate, including on the ground at demonstrations, to gather evidence and investigate any suspected hate crimes, or hate speech, or signage. This includes the presence of flags that promote terrorist organizations, as identified by Public Safety Canada,” Demkiw said.
Recently, Hezbollah flags have been seen at Toronto demonstrations. Hezbollah has been designated as a terrorist organization by the Canadian government.
“I’m very much aware that there were Hezbollah flags that were observed at a recent protest,” said Supt. Katherine Stephenson, commander of the Intelligence Unit.
“That is an ongoing investigation. I personally have been involved in conversations with the ministry of the attorney-general, hate crime working group. The possession of flags in a protest would go toward the charge of public incitement of hatred,” she said. “We are looking at the potential of charges in this case.”
The threshold for laying charges has several elements, Stephenson said. “Probably the most complicated element of that offense is that it has to have the likely breach of the peace. And the likelihood of the breach of the peace can be subjective in some cases. We are looking at collecting evidence around that set of circumstances involving those flags of how do we establish a likelihood of the breach of the peace.”
In York Region, just north of Toronto, police are also increasing patrols near faith-based institutions, schools and community centres.
Two command posts will be operating from Oct. 4-8. One will be stationed at the corner of Bathurst Street and Clark Avenue, near the Promenade Shopping Centre. The other will be a mobile unit operating throughout Vaughan, Richmond Hill and Markham, according to a press release issued by police.
