Photo credit: Yahoo News Canada
The Jewish community in Ottawa is in shock following a violent stabbing incident that left a woman in her 70s injured inside a Loblaws grocery store known for its kosher food section.
7Israel National News reports that the attack occurred on Wednesday afternoon at the store located at the corner of Baseline Road and Woodroffe Avenue.
According to the Ottawa Police Service (OPS), the woman entered the store with a friend around 1:35 pm when she was approached and stabbed by a man. Officers arrested the suspect at the scene “without incident,” while store staff provided immediate aid to the victim. She was transported to the hospital and released later that day.
On Thursday, police confirmed that a 71-year-old man appeared in court to face charges of aggravated assault and possession of a dangerous weapon. OPS Deputy Chief Trish Ferguson said the force’s hate and bias crime unit is assisting in the investigation of what she described as an “unprovoked attack.”
She said, “I can certainly appreciate that the members of the community are assuming the worst. As soon as we have information that can be shared [as to whether] this is a matter of a targeted attack, we will do so.”
The Jewish Federation of Ottawa expressed relief that the victim, described as a “cherished member of the community,” is recovering.
The federation acknowledged the support of the Ottawa Police Service. In a statement, it said, “Our thoughts and heartfelt wishes are with the victim and their loved ones, and we have reached out to the family to offer support. We invite you to join us in sending them refuah shiema, prayers for strength and healing.
The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) also issued a statement. Its director of government affairs for Ontario, Josh Landau, said, “While the motivation for this unprovoked assault has not yet been determined, we cannot ignore the broader context in Ottawa. Anti-Jewish hate, antisemitism, and violence have been normalized
since the abhorrent attack on October 7. Jewish institutions, businesses, and community members have been increasingly singled out by extremists.”
Data released at the end of July by Statistics Canada reveal that hate crime targeting Canadian Jews remained alarmingly high in 2024, with 920 police reported incidents
-making Jews the most targeted religious group in the country.
Jews were found to be 25 times more likely to be the victims of a hate crime than other Canadian citizens.
The number of overall antisemitism hate crimes was down slightly from their high in 2023, when they reached 959. However, they remain well above the figures for 2022, when 527 antisemitic hate crimes were reported.
