Authorities are looking into an overnight blaze that caused severe damage to Nöam, a prominent kosher eatery located in Montreal's Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce borough, CBC News reports.
The two-alarm fire broke out around 3:15 a.m., according to Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) spokesperson Raphael Bergeron. While no injuries occurred, the structure sustained major destruction.
Bergeron confirmed to CBC News that early indications point to an individual being on site when the blaze ignited. Investigators are currently reviewing surveillance footage.
Video obtained by CBC News depicts a person wearing a dark pair of pants and a white T-shirt apparently starting the fire before fleeing. Security footage recorded during the early hours of Aug. 1 appears to show a masked individual spreading an accelerant before setting the building alight.
Howard Szalavetz, the owner of the building, expressed heartbreak over the destruction, recalling that he purchased the property four decades ago alongside his father. While the building houses multiple occupants - including a garage, a car wash, and offices - only the restaurant suffered damage.
"Given the fact that it was a kosher restaurant, I find it hard to believe it wasn't antisemitism," Szalavetz remarked, adding, "If my thoughts on the reasons for this are correct, then it's a very sad state in society if this is what happens to good people, good hardworking people. They run a good business, they are good tenants."
Multiple public officials visited the site on Saturday and urged authorities to treat the incident with extreme gravity. In a social media post, Quebec Liberal MP Anthony Housefather urged, "Absolutely disgusted to see what appears to be an arson attack on Nöam, a local kosher restaurant overnight. This attack on a Jewish [owned] business must be investigated as a hate crime [and] those involved in this criminal act must be caught [and] prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."
Borough Mayor Stéphanie Valenzuela emphasized local safety efforts, writing online, "CDN-NDG is home to a strong, diverse and resilient community. Acts of violence and intimidation have no place in our neighborhoods". She confirmed that borough officials are maintaining communication with law enforcement.
The event, taking place during Shabbat, has heightened concerns within the Jewish community amid a documented rise in local acts of aggression. Advocates from B’nai Brith Canada visited the scene following the conclusion of Shabbat.
“The community is shaken, and many are concerned that this attack may have been hate-motivated," said Paola Samuel, B’nai Brith Canada’s Regional Director for Quebec and Atlantic Canada.
“What we want is clarity and transparency," she emphasized. “The Jewish community must be informed throughout the investigative process."
In a subsequent statement on X, Samuel wrote, “B’nai Brith stand[s] with the owners, staff, and patrons of Noam as they confront the aftermath of this tragic loss…"
“We are grateful for the swift response of the fire department and call on the [police] to conduct a transparent and prompt investigation to determine the motive behind this abhorrent and devastating act, including whether it constitutes an act of domestic terrorism or hate-motivated violence."
Samuel added that given global trends, a national security link “cannot be ruled out."
The incident follows several violent occurrences in Montreal throughout July, including assaults targeting Hasidic men returning from religious services and public verbal harassment against a Jewish resident. Arson attacks have also targeted other institutions, including an attempted burning of Westmount's Temple Emanu-El in June.
By mid-July, B’nai Brith had registered 27 violent incidents for the year - a figure exceeding all previous annual totals except for 2023, when 77 such acts were recorded following the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel.
Richard Robertson, Director of Research and Advocacy at B’nai Brith Canada, noted that recent North American incidents align with patterns potentially linked to foreign state actors or criminal proxies, referencing a report from the Integrated Terrorism Assessment Centre regarding global geopolitical friction spilling over locally.
Simon Wolle, Chief Executive Officer of B’nai Brith Canada, voiced urgency regarding national security.
“Across the country, antisemitism is spiraling out of control," Wolle stated. “It is heartbreaking and intolerable. This is a total breakdown in Canada’s social contract."
He cautioned against jumping to conclusions" to avoid creating an “industry of fear," while maintaining that the destruction of a Jewish establishment demands immediate federal policy interventions.
“The latest attack on Nöam, combined with other recent incidents, has reinforced the impression that Jews are unsafe and unwelcome in Canada. This horrific incident must be investigated, but immediate steps are needed to protect Canadians and reassure Jewish communities."
Wolle pressed for concrete government measures, saying, “This is the time for Canada to establish a National Task Force on Antisemitism and conduct a thorough inquiry into its nature, scale, and causes."
“Our leaders must take accountability. Acknowledging that Canada has an antisemitism problem is not enough," he concluded.