Canadian police arrested a man suspected of attacking an Israeli pavilion with a knife at a heritage festival in Edmonton, Alberta, in an incident that prompted the evacuation of performers and volunteers. No injuries were reported.
Video circulated online appears to show a man trying to cut through part of the Israeli pavilion with a knife and damage the display. Security personnel are then seen detaining the suspect as he shouts, “All Zionists are racist.” The X account Levithan reported that the suspect is of Somali origin.
Attacking the Israeli pavilion at a festival in Canada
Stacey Leavitt-Wright, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Edmonton, addressed the incident in a Shabbat message to the community, saying it occurred earlier in the week and remained under police investigation.
“Most of you have already seen or heard about an incident that occurred in the middle of the festival and is now under police investigation,” she wrote. “Immediately following the incident at the kitchen tent, dancers who were about to take the stage for a performance were quickly taken to shelter in the cultural tent, together with staff and volunteers.”
The arrest of the suspect
According to Leavitt-Wright, once authorities gave the all-clear, the performers were offered the choice of giving a shortened performance or not dancing at all. “While loud calls of ‘All Zionists are racist’ and ‘One solution, revolution’ could be heard, they chose to dance,” she wrote. “I cannot imagine what they were feeling inside, but I saw it culminate in a triumphant display of determination and pride.”
The incident comes amid a sharp rise in reported antisemitic violence in Canada. Data released around three weeks ago by B’nai Brith Canada showed that 27 violent antisemitic incidents had been recorded since the start of 2026, more than double the 10 violent incidents recorded during all of 2025.
The organization said the incidents included shootings targeting Jewish institutions. Richard Robertson, B’nai Brith Canada’s director of research and advocacy, said 2026 currently ranks second only to 2023 in the number of violent antisemitic incidents recorded in the country.
In 2023, 77 such incidents were documented following the October 7 Hamas-led terrorist attack on Israel and the ensuing war. Even at this stage of 2026, the number of violent incidents recorded this year has already surpassed the totals for 2022, 2024 and 2025.