Canadian security officials warn of unprecedented threats to Jewish community
Senior Canadian national-security officials have warned that the Jewish community in Canada faces threats that are unprecedented in both severity and number since the Hamas attack of Oct. 7, 2023, according to The Globe and Mail.
Officials from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Public Safety Canada and the Integrated Threat Assessment Centre told the newspaper that a convergence of threats faces the community. They named white nationalists, people inspired by Islamic terrorist groups, threats from Iran, and online communities that target young people to carry out violent acts.
The officials said radicalization is happening faster in Canada, creating risks to the Jewish community at a pace not seen since the 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States. They said the time between a person's radicalization and an attempted violent act has shrunk from several months to under a month.
The officials pointed to five terror plots targeting the Jewish community that authorities disrupted in Canada over the past three years. Those cases included arrests of minors in Ottawa, a father and son in Toronto, and a man in Quebec who planned to travel to the United States to attack Jews.
The officials were not named, the Globe said, because of the sensitive and often classified nature of their work. Their analysis was provided in response to a request for a briefing on antisemitism threats in Canada.
The Globe reported, citing eight sources, that the federal government is set to unveil a new national-security strategy on Thursday. It would be the first such strategy in more than 20 years. The government has also said in a report that it views antisemitism as a matter of national security.
In March 2026, the Integrated Threat Assessment Centre assessed that a "realistic possibility" existed of a violent extremist attack against Canada's Jewish community in the next six months.
Earlier that month, Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree announced a dedicated investment of up to $10 million to help Jewish communities protect themselves against hate-motivated crimes.
