The Jewish community in London has been on edge, said a community leader, following a series of synagogue attacks around the world in the last week.
Two synagogues in the Toronto area were struck by gunfire last weekend, part of a string of shootings targeting Jewish institutions in the region. No injuries were reported.
On Thursday, a man in Michigan drove a truck loaded with explosives into a synagogue while more than 120 children were inside its early childhood centre. The vehicle caught fire and the suspect was later killed in an exchange of gunfire with security. No children or staff were hurt.
Smoke rises from the building after the Michigan State Police reported an active shooting incident at the Temple Israel Synagogue in West Bloomfield, Michigan, U.S., March 12, 2026 in a still image from video. ABC Affiliate WXYZ via REUTERS
In London, the heightened concern was visible. The Jewish Community Centre, which operates several childcare programs, had a police cruiser stationed outside its day school on Friday.
“We’re hearing from parents that they’re concerned, that they are worried,” said Dean Lavi, executive director of Jewish London.
Last fall, Deborah Lyons, Canada’s special envoy for Holocaust Remembrance and Combating Antisemitism, said in a statement that “antisemitism, one of the world’s oldest and most persistent hatreds, has reached levels that most Canadian Jews have never experienced before.”
While Lyons pointed to a national surge, Londoners reported similar experiences in hate-motivated incidents.
According to a report, London police stated that Jewish residents were victimized in 26 hate-motivated occurrences in 2023, a 24 per cent increase from the year before. Those incidents accounted for 14 per cent of all reported hate crimes in the city, placing the Jewish community among the five most frequently targeted groups alongside Black, South Asian, Muslim and LGBT residents.
Despite the rise in reported incidents, Lavi said the relationship between Jewish London and the London Police Service have been “wonderful,” and that the police are “incredibly responsive” when things happen close to home.
The Beth Tefilah Synagogue on Oct. 8, 2025. (Hayden King/XFM News)
In response to questions about police presence around places of worship, the London Police Service provided a statement to XFM News.
“As we continue to monitor the situations in the Middle East as well as around the world, the community can expect to see an increased police presence around places of worship and community gatherings,” police said.
