Statement from the GIC to the Jewish Community and Canadian Leaders

To our Jewish neighbours and friends in Canada:

The Global Imams Council (GIC) unequivocally condemns the shootings at three synagogues in the Greater Toronto Area. Firing bullets at synagogues is an act of raw antisemitic terror. It is evil, it is criminal, and it is an attack on the Jewish community, the Jewish people, and on Canada itself. There is no “context,” no “but,” and no political cause on earth that can ever excuse or in any way lessen the moral turpitude of such an attack.

We recognize that these attacks come after two years of the most violent and vile antisemitic rhetoric, accompanied by open calls for violence, that were unleashed into our world on October 7 by Islamist terrorists funded with billions of dollars by the regime occupying Iran. That day did not just bring mass murder and kidnapping; it also unleashed a wave of ideological hatred that has sought to normalize threats, intimidation, and incitement against Jews everywhere. The shootings of synagogues in Canada are a direct extension of this climate, and they must be confronted with the full moral and legal force of our society.

As Muslim religious leaders, we speak to you plainly: these attacks violate the most basic principles of our faith and of every civilized legal and moral order. Our tradition categorically forbids acts of violence against our Jewish fellow Canadians with whom we have been privileged to share this country, and forbids the targeting of any of our fellow Canadians or the violation of any house of worship. Whoever the perpetrators may be, we condemn any individual—Muslim or otherwise—who supports or engages in the glorification of these acts or any other act of antisemitic violence, or who supports, promotes, or finances banned terrorist entities in Canada. There is no religious, political, or ideological justification for such violence nor is there any defence for remaining quiet or ambiguous about the targets of the attack or their motivation.

The Global Imams Council has never wavered in its Islamic condemnation of antisemitism and of the extremists who weaponize it against our Jewish brethren. Our record is clear and consistent: the fight against antisemitism, as the toxic glue that binds extremists across the spectrum and corrodes democracies, is non‑negotiable. Nor will our resolve to combat this evil be in any way deterred by those who try to intimidate, harass, or smear Muslims who stand with their Jewish neighbours against antisemitic hate.

To Canada’s political leaders and police officials—partners with whom we have worked and will continue to work to combat hatred and extremism—we say: targeted gunfire at synagogues requires a visible, immediate, and comprehensive policy response from law enforcement and elected officials that matches the gravity of the threat. We should not have to wait for a large‑scale atrocity like the Bondi Beach attack for Canada to apply the same level of seriousness, coordination, and resolve to protecting Jewish life here at home.

We therefore explicitly and publicly support the demands of Jewish community leadership for urgent, concrete government action. We back, in full and without reservation, calls to:

• Dramatically strengthen and streamline security funding for vulnerable religious institutions—especially synagogues, Jewish schools, and community centres—so they can protect themselves immediately.
• Enforce, with maximum seriousness, hate‑crime and terrorism laws against individuals and networks who glorify, encourage, or facilitate antisemitic violence, both online and offline.
• Identify, expose, and disrupt foreign and domestic extremist actors who incite or support attacks on Jewish targets in Canada, including those linked to state sponsors and organized extremist movements.

The Global Imams Council stands ready to work in partnership with Jewish communities, law enforcement, and all levels of government to confront this threat. We will use our pulpits, institutions, and networks to challenge those who fuel antisemitism, and we will support robust legal and security measures to prevent further attacks on our Jewish neighbours with whom we have been privileged to share this country.

We are grateful to be joined in this note by GIC leaders in Europe, who have co‑signed this statement and who are painfully familiar with the trajectory of this type of antisemitic violence when there is not a whole‑of‑society, unmitigated response to prevent it from metastasizing.

Signatories:

The Global Imams Council — Canada 

The Global Imams Council — Europe