The Canadian police witnessed a frightening rise in anti-Muslim hate crimes in Toronto, the largest city in Canada, following the bloody events that occurred on October 7, 2023, in Gaza, and the subsequent killing, bombing, and displacement of Palestinian civilians by the Israeli occupation forces, according to Reuters agency.
 

The Chief of Toronto Police, "Myron Demkiw," announced in a press statement that the city recorded 69 arrests and 173 charges related to hate crimes since October 7, 2023.

Demkiw confirmed to journalists that Islamophobia is a major concern in the community, expressing his worry about the significant underreporting of hate crimes, indicating that there are more incidents that have not been reported. He stated that these statistics reflect the urgent need to raise awareness and improve the reporting of hate crimes to address this troubling phenomenon, according to the same agency.

According to Demkiw; the number of confirmed hate crimes in Toronto reached 203, an increase of 93% compared to the previous year, and calls related to hate crimes decreased in December and January, but saw a sharp rise of 67% in February, noting that 56% of the 84 recorded hate crimes so far in 2024 were anti-Semitic.

Global sympathy for Gaza is increasing

The American newspaper "The New York Times" reported that the US military administration is concerned about the sympathy Gaza has gained since the aggression began against it.

US Army military commander "Charles Brown Jr." expressed his fear that every person who falls in Gaza brings sympathy that may fuel the desire for "revenge" among some in Israel and increase the "global standing" of the Islamic resistance movement "Hamas," and the American newspaper continued that there is an increase in global sympathy for the Palestinian cause.