Kosher Restaurant in Montreal Burns in Suspected Arson as Canadian Antisemitic Incidents Mount

Nöam, a kosher restaurant on Décarie Boulevard in Montreal's Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce borough, was destroyed by a two-alarm fire that broke out around 3:15 a.m. Saturday, according to CBC News. No one was injured, but the building and the business next door sustained major damage, the Jerusalem Post reported.

Montreal police spokesperson Raphael Bergeron told CBC News that investigators have surveillance video showing a man in a white T-shirt and dark pants on the premises when the fire started. The Jerusalem Post reported that the SPVM's arson squad is treating the fire as suspected arson and has opened a hate-crime investigation. Bergeron was careful to note police have not yet established a motive. "We don't have any indication at this time, but we're going to look at all the possibilities," he told i24NEWS.

That caution matters. No charges have been filed, and no suspect has been named. The hate-crime angle is, at this point, an active line of inquiry, not a confirmed finding.

The Owner's Fear

Howard Szalavetz, who owns the building and has run his real-estate business out of it for 40 years, told CBC News he got a call around 4 a.m. and ran to the scene in tears. "Given the fact that it was a kosher restaurant, I find it hard to believe it wasn't antisemitism," he said. The building houses several tenants, including a garage and a car wash, but only the restaurant was damaged.

Szalavetz's suspicion is understandable given the pattern of recent attacks. But it's his personal belief, not a police finding, and CBC's own reporting is careful to frame it that way.

Political Reaction Crosses Party Lines

Canada's Public Safety Minister, Gary Anandasangaree, called himself "extremely concerned" and said "antisemitism has no place in our societies," according to the Jerusalem Post. Mount Royal Liberal MP Anthony Housefather said he was "absolutely disgusted" and demanded the attack be prosecuted as a hate crime, per i24NEWS. Quebec provincial representative Elisabeth Prass also visited the site, according to the Daily Wire.

Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre used the moment to attack the government directly. "Another day. Another attack against Canada's Jewish people," he wrote, adding: "No more talk. We need real action to protect Jews and other Canadians from the hate crimes the government tolerates on our streets," as reported by the Jerusalem Post.

Poilievre's charge that the government "tolerates" hate crimes is his political characterization, not an established fact, and no source here documents a specific policy failure tied to this particular fire. B'nai Brith Canada took a more measured version of the same argument, telling the Jerusalem Post that while police haven't established a motive, the incident fits a "much broader failure" in which governments have allowed "a climate of intimidation, disorder and escalating threats" around Jewish communities. This represents a legitimate concern about pattern and trend, distinct from an accusation about this single fire.

Part of a Longer, Documented Pattern

This fire isn't an isolated data point. The Daily Wire cataloged a string of recent incidents: overnight gunfire at a Toronto Jewish girls' school on three separate occasions, shots fired at a Toronto bagel shop, firebombings at two Montreal Jewish institutions, and synagogue vandalism in Nova Scotia. The Jerusalem Post separately noted attacks on kosher bakeries in Toronto and an incident of antisemitic abuse against a Jewish family at a Montreal playground. i24NEWS placed the broader surge in context dating back to the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel, after which antisemitic incidents rose sharply across Canada.

Canada's Jewish population, estimated at roughly 400,000 people according to the Daily Wire, has increasingly become the focus of advocacy groups warning that 2026 could mark one of the most violent years on record for the community. This is an assessment from community advocates rather than an official government tally.

The Soccer Match Hours Later

The same day, at a Major League Soccer match at Stade Saputo, Israeli forward Dor Turgeman of the New England Revolution faced chants of "Death to Israel" and "Free Palestine" from sections of the crowd during the game against CF Montréal, the Daily Wire reported. Turgeman scored in the 36th minute and celebrated by running toward the stands with his arms out, pointing to his ears. MLS has not issued a public statement addressing the chants as of this writing.

What Happens Next

The SPVM's arson squad and hate-crime investigators are working the surveillance footage of the man in the white T-shirt, according to CBC News. No arrest has been announced. Whether Montreal police ultimately classify the fire as a hate crime, and whether they identify and charge a suspect, will determine if this becomes another unsolved entry in the pattern advocates are tracking, or the case that finally produces an accountable name.