Supporters rally for Israel and Palestine in Calgary

People gathered in Calgary to rally in support of both Israel and Palestine on Sunday following attacks by Hamas militants.

Students Supporting Israel, a group at the University of Calgary and Mount Royal University, were joined by more than 60 people, including government officials such as Conservative MP Shuvaloy Majumdar, in front of the Municipal Building at around 12 p.m.

There was a heavy police presence near City Hall and the Olympic Plaza, in accordance with the Calgary Police Service’s call for more police as a form of “proactive policing.”

Read More: Calgary police to increase patrols amid war in Israel

The attack from Hamas militants during Simchat Torah, a Jewish holiday that celebrates and marks the end of the yearly cycle of public Torah readings, is being called one of the deadliest attacks on Israel in decades.

According to an Israeli embassy spokesperson on Monday, the death toll has risen to at least 900 Israelis, which are mostly civilians.

Meanwhile, the Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip says over 1,600 people have been killed in Israel’s retaliatory strikes.

Thousands have been wounded on both sides.

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“The situation in Israel cannot be overstated: this is an unprovoked, unprecedented attack on the very existence of Israel, based on an antisemitic ideology with the singular focus of erasing the world’s only Jewish state from the map,” reads a statement from the Jewish Federations of Canada (JFC).

“Neither Canada nor any country in the world would allow such a mass terror event to go without a serious response to address the threat and protect their citizens. As representatives of Canada’s
organized Jewish community, we say, clearly and loudly: We stand with Israel. We call on our fellow Canadians to do the same and are heartened by the response so far.”

Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek called the attack on Saturday “inhumane.”

The horror we have seen unfold in Israel today is inhumane and requires leaders to stand together in condemning violence. Planned warfare is not the way to make political statements. My heart is with the Jewish community in Calgary.

— Jyoti Gondek (@JyotiGondek) October 8, 2023

“The horror we have seen unfold in Israel today is inhumane and requires leaders to stand together in condemning violence,” her post on X reads.

“Planned warfare is not the way to make political statements. My heart is with the Jewish community in Calgary.”

This also comes as dozens of students held a rally in support of the Palestinian people Monday at the American University in Egypt’s capital.

In Toronto, there have been various demonstrations in the downtown area in support of Palestine and Israel.

In Calgary, a protest in support of Palestine organized by Justice for Palestinians happened at 2 p.m. in the same location, where the group reiterated “its unconditional support for the Palestinian liberation struggle.”

“We condemn the decades-long Israeli occupation and settler-colonial project that has created the conditions that made the present violence inevitable,” a post on Facebook reads.

“We also condemn the hypocrisy of Canadian politicians and media who have labeled the Palestinian resistance as ‘terrorism’ while saying nothing about the unending Israeli violence against Palestinians, including the almost 250 Palestinians killed by Israeli settlers and soldiers just this year before the current fighting began.”

“Israel’s brutal policies against the Palestinian people, supported by Western governments including Canada, are responsible for this violence, and the blood of all the victims is on their hands. There will never be peace in Palestine so long as the unjust system of colonization, apartheid, and occupation remains.”

The U.N. said more than 140,000 people have fled their homes in Gaza as of Monday, most of them after Israeli warnings of bombardment.

Charges laid following demonstrations

Calgary police said Monday that one person was taken into custody following rallies that happened the same day between the local Israeli and Palestinian groups.

They say no charges have been laid as investigators are still interviewing the person.

Police don’t believe the person is a part of either community group.

No other information is available at this time.

Police say an update will be provided if charges are laid.

-With files from The Associated Press