The annual “Walk with Israel” march in Toronto posted a record-breaking attendance of over 50,000 on Sunday, its numbers apparently boosted by the rescue of four Israeli hostages from Hamas terrorists on the previous day.
The walk kicked off with an address from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was in Toronto for meetings with local Jewish community leaders, the media, and Canadian officials. His speech to the Walk with Israel was the first address delivered to Toronto’s Jewish community by a sitting Israeli prime minister since 1978.
Netanyahu said the October 7 atrocities were a harsh reminder than any prospective Palestinian state would have to be “effectively demilitarized.”
“We must not repeat the mistakes of the past. When Israel left Lebanon, Iran moved in. When Israel left Gaza, Iran moved in again. We cannot afford to have that mistake repeated with the same consequences a third time. We cannot afford a third Iranian presence on the hills overlooking Tel Aviv,” Netanyahu said.
“Just as we are asked to recognize a nation-state for the Palestinian people, the Palestinians will have to recognize Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people. The Palestinians will have to recognize the Jewish state,” he declared.
Several former Israeli hostages were among the participants in Toronto on Sunday, as well as survivors of the savage Hamas attack on October 7 and family members of the dead. A number of tributes and events were held after the walk, including one dedicated to the young people murdered, kidnapped, and raped by Hamas at the Nova Music Festival.
The Walk with Israel, organized by the UJA Federation of Greater Toronto, has been held every year for the past 55 years. It is often described as the largest Jewish community event outside of Israel, but this year’s turnout was extraordinary – well over double the turnout for the 2023 event, despite concerns that pro-terrorism demonstrators would make trouble at the vent.
Security was heightened at this year’s march. Toronto police said they made six arrests on Sunday, without providing details of the alleged offenses.
The police used buses to block groups of hostile demonstrators from interfering with the Walk with Israel event, but they could still be heard yelling through loudspeakers, telling Canadian Jews to “Go back to Europe!” and “Leave Palestine alone!”
Some participants in the Walk with Israel described having to bring their families past groups of masked pro-Hamas demonstrators chanting the group’s genocidal slogan, “From the river to the sea.”
Four pro-Palestinian demonstrators were charged with assaulting police officers on Saturday near the U.S. consulate in Toronto when the officers tried to confiscate a large flag they were using to conceal an act of vandalism. Another man was arrested for throwing a rock at a synagogue in Toronto and breaking one of its windows.
Walk with Israel organizers said they were proud that their enormous event was conducted without the anger, violence, and vandalism that have characterized much smaller pro-Hamas demonstrations around the world.
“It is record-breaking attendance. We’ve been doing this event for the last 55 years and it’s just an unprecedented show of support from the Jewish community and beyond the Jewish community. It’s really inspiring to see,” said Noah Shack, vice president of countering anti-Semitism and hate for the UJA.
Shack added that the number of police required to keep the walkers safe was “a sad testament to where our city is right now.”
“To see a record-breaking turnout this year speaks volumes about our community’s pride, resilience and determination to show our city who we are and what we stand for. It was especially encouraging to see many people from different faiths and cultures walking with us,” said UJA chair Jeff Rosenthal.
“At a time of unprecedented hate directed against the Jewish community in Toronto. today’s record-breaking walk sends a clear message that we are strong, united and proud,” said Adam Minsky, president and CEO of the UJA Federation of Greater Toronto.
“It’s incredibly important. We are a community that comes together. I think that’s been proven, especially since October 7,” Maureen Leshem, cousin of an Israeli kidnap victim named Romi Gonen, told Canada’s National Post before the walk began.
“I think the other remarkable thing about today is that we have a high Iranian community that has shown up for us; Christian community that has shown up for us, as well. It’s extraordinary. It’s extremely meaningful,” she said.
Avichai Brodutch, whose wife and three children were held hostage by Hamas until November, said it was “really important for us to come over to Toronto and meet the community and tell our story to the people of Canada.”
“It makes us remember again, as always, that the Jewish people have been here for thousands of years, and we’re here to stay, and we have a very big mission to do in Israel, and there’s a mission to do here in the face of hatred,” a woman who survived the October 7 attack told the National Post.
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