VANCOUVER — Allie Saks had just dropped off two children at the Talmud Torah School on Oak Street in Vancouver, under the watch of multiple police wearing bulletproof vests, and at least one police dog.
She broke down in tears.
"I think it's scary for all of us," Saks said of the police presence on Monday, the anniversary of the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel that killed about 1,200 people and triggered the ongoing war that Gaza's health ministry says has left more than 41,000 Palestinians dead.
"It feels like a day of grieving, a day of mourning," she said as her voice trailed off into tears. "It's hard to drop your kid off somewhere where you have to see police in front. And it's emotional for all of us."
Vancouver Police said they planned to station extra officers Monday at faith-based schools as well as places of worship and gathering.
Police, security guards and volunteers could be seen at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver and the Schara Tzedeck Synagogue, also on Oak Street.
At the community centre, a Vancouver Police mobile command has been set up in the parking lot.
A mobile monitoring unit featuring multiple cameras was parked in front of the nearby synagogue, the site of an unsolved arson attack in May that blackened the temple's front doors.
Rabbi Andrew Rosenblatt at the synagogue said congregation members were in a sombre mood, "a little bit akin to the anniversary of 9/11," referring to the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington in 2001.
About 100 of the 250 hostages taken by Hamas on Oct. 7 last year have not returned, and hostilities have spilled into nearby Lebanon.
"My impression is that people are more observing this as a day of sadness and memory … than they're perceiving it, at least here in Vancouver, as a day of being threatened," Rosenblatt said.
He added that a silver lining has been the response of most Canadians in the last year, and that people are "rediscovering how important it is to feel close and in lock-step with the Jewish community."
"There are a lot of people who come up to us and say, 'We understand what you're going through. We really stand with you. We stand with Israel,'" Rosenblatt said. "There are many of those people around, even though maybe on the news it looks like there (are) people who say, 'long live Oct. 7' — which is a regrettable and detestable thing to say."
Vancouver Police Chief Constable Adam Palmer said last week that protests to mark the anniversary across the city were posing a "significant" risk of disorder.
Among the groups planning rallies and events on Monday is pro-Palestinian group Samidoun, which promoted its events on social media by referring to the Oct. 7 attacks as "Al-Aqsa Flood," the Hamas code name for the operation.
Samidoun said the events would include a "teach-in" about the operation and a rally at the Vancouver Art Gallery on Monday, as well as attending an Oct. 8 court appearance the group said would be made by Samidoun organizer Charlotte Kates.
Samidoun director Kates was arrested last year in a hate-crime investigation after praising the Oct. 7 attack as "heroic and brave" in a speech at a rally.
Samidoun did not immediately respond to a request for comment and an interview.
Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver chief executive Ezra Shanken said there was ongoing unease among both the local Jewish community and patrons of other ethnicities who are members of the community centre.
Shanken said the federation had spent about $100,000 a month on security and public safety at its institutions in the past year, and more needed to be done to oppose what he called "violent rhetoric" and antisemitism from some protest groups.
When asked about the trauma felt by the Jewish community over Oct. 7, Shanken referred to statements by American-Israeli activist Rachel Goldberg-Polin — whose son was abducted and killed in the attack.
"She explained her pain as being in trauma, as if we're in a car accident," Shanken said. "And you think about that car accident in the past, that's not what we're in. We're in the car accident and we're still trapped in the car. A year later, we're still trapped in the car."
The leaders of all three major political parties in British Columbia highlighted their support for the province's Jewish community while on the campaign trail Monday.
BC NDP Leader David Eby, paid tribute to Ben Mizrachi, a Vancouver man killed in the Oct. 7 attack.
"He was just 22, and we lost him," Eby said in Maple Ridge, B.C., adding that everybody must condemn the "glorification of violence."
"It's an open wound for so many British Columbians. We mourn those who were lost then and those who we have lost since then."
In Vancouver, B.C. Conservatives Leader John Rustad denounced the attack and some local protesters he said were "celebrating the massacre of Jews and glorifying terrorist organizations."
"There are still hostages being held," said Rustad, who wore around his neck a metal tag engraved "bring them home — now" in solidarity with the hostages.
"They need to be returned. This needs to come to an end. In British Columbia, we need to make sure that people are safe and antisemitism is taken head-on in this province," he said.
Provincial Green Leader Sonia Furstenau said in a statement that party members "are committed to the safety of all British Columbians and stand firmly against hate in all its forms."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 7, 2024.
Chuck Chiang, The Canadian Press
