By Nia Williams
(Reuters) – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Saturday condemned violence and antisemitism at anti-NATO and pro-Palestinian protests in downtown Montreal on Friday night time, the place NATO delegates have gathered for the alliance’s annual meeting.
Round 300 delegates from NATO members and associate states are assembly in Montreal from Nov. 22-25.
Native media reported that protesters burned an effigy of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, lit smoke bombs and set two automobiles on hearth.
Police used tear fuel and batons to disperse the group and three individuals have been arrested for assaulting officers and obstructing police work, based on CTV Information.
Movies and photos posted to social media confirmed masked rioters burning flares and battering storefront home windows.
“What we saw on the streets of Montreal last night was appalling. Acts of antisemitism, intimidation, and violence must be condemned wherever we see them,” Trudeau stated in a submit on social media web site X.
Montreal police stated officers carried out a dispersal operation within the downtown space and that the protest was over by 7 p.m. ET.
Professional-Palestinian protests have been going down throughout Canada for the reason that Israel-Gaza warfare began late final yr.
Israel’s 13-month marketing campaign in Gaza has killed greater than 44,000 individuals and displaced practically all of the enclave’s inhabitants at the very least as soon as, based on Gaza officers.
The warfare was launched in response to an assault by Hamas-led fighters who killed 1,200 individuals and captured greater than 250 hostages in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Israel has stated.
