The leader of a Saskatoon synagogue says his community is shaken up after the building they were holding prayer service in was vandalized. The Agudas Isreal Synagogue congregation had the Saturday Shabbat prayer service disrupted when someone egged the building and multiple vehicles in the parking lot. “It’s an emotional time for our community,” Robert Englebert, the co-president of Congregation Agudas Isreal said on Tuesday. Englebert says he’s troubled to know this wasn’t some childish prank by children, and instead targeted vandalism against families inside the building. “The sound is jarring when it’s hitting windows and so forth,” he said. “There were children by the window. Children of our community were watching this happen.” Englebert says windows and cars can be cleaned, but he and others fear potential escalating intimidation. “We worry about what’s next, right? It could be a rock next time. It could be something else. And unfortunately, we’ve had this before.” In 2002 the synagogue had a Molotov cocktail thrown through a window. Other religious leaders and faith groups in Saskatoon were surprised to see something like this happen so close to home, after seeing similar antisemitic attacks in larger cities across Canada and The United States. “I was literally sick to my stomach,” Captain Derek Kerr of The Salvation Army said. “I could not believe that this was happening in Saskatoon.” “It’s important for people of various faith backgrounds to come together and stand together with the Jewish community here in Saskatoon. Because, really, an attack on one group is an attack on all of us.” Many have taken to social media to denounce the attack and support the synagogue. Multifaith Saskatoon says there’s no place for antisemitism, hatred, or intimidation. “Every house of worship should be a place of peace, safety and prayer,” Multifaith Saskatoon president Rashid Ahmed said. Mayor Cynthia Block posted a statement on her Facebook page denouncing the incident and calling on residents to come together. “Saskatoon is strongest when we stand together in support of one another,” her statement said. The Saskatoon Police Service (SPS) is aware of the vandalism but wouldn’t confirm whether it’s investigating or not. As of Tuesday afternoon police tell CTV News it had not received an official report regarding this incident, but was working to contact the synagogue and file a report. When asked about the synagogue being targeted, Chief Cam McBride said any potential crime with “hate involvement” is taken seriously. “We would love to hold people accountable in every circumstance. because we just can’t have it. We have zero tolerance for this kind of stuff.” Englebert said the synagogue has hired security for high holy days in the past, but it will have a security guard working at its next Saturday Shabbat prayer service as the congregation reviews its security policies.
