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Leading Jewish group calls on Montreal to reject 'dishonest' motion to cut ties with Israel
B’nai Brith Canada is calling on the City Council of Montreal to reject a motion by opposition party Projet Montréal to cut institutional ties with the State of Israel, calling it “divisive” and “deceitful.”
In an open letter seen by National Post, B’nai Brith Canada accuses Projet Montréal of “explosive falsehoods” in the labelling of Israel as an “apartheid” regime and accusing its government of “genocide,” adding that the motion contains “calculated lies and extreme characterizations.”
“For the City of Montreal to weigh into this conflict would be inappropriate and exacerbate tensions between communities,” the letter reads. “It is not in the city’s purview to dictate foreign policy for its residents, as our federal leaders are elected to do that, and no other elected officials are charged with that mandate.”
In an interview with National Post, B’nai Brith Canada regional director for Quebec, Paola Samuel, emphasized that this motion is not just an issue for Jewish Montrealers.
“This is an issue for all Montrealers,” she said. “It’s inappropriate for (the City of Montreal) to weigh in on an issue that has nothing to do with everyday Montrealers…city councillors are elected to run the city, rather than be distracted by things that are lies and dishonest and not factually correct. Every single Montrealer should be concerned about this.”
The motion was introduced by Projet Montréal on June 4 , and called on the city council to “recognize and denounce the apartheid regime in Palestine and the genocide being perpetrated there, and affirm solidarity with Palestinians and other civilian victims of hostilities in the Middle East.”
This would include suspending institutional ties with Israel’s current government by not inviting representatives of the state to official events held at city hall “until Israel returns to its internationally recognized borders, ceases its violations of the rights of the Palestinian people, and ends its violations of international law.”
Originally set to be presented at the city council meeting on June 15, the motion was later pushed to Aug. 24, after Mayor Soraya Martinez Ferrada pushed it from the agenda .
The B’Nai Brith letter explains how Ferrada proposed an alternative text, the Declaration for Civil Peace, Intercultural Dialogue and Living Together, recognizing the plight of all civilians in armed conflicts. However, because it was not submitted in advance under the council’s procedural rules, it carried no force as an act of the City.
B’Nai Brith is asking the administration to table it properly on Aug. 24, “so that councillors have something to vote for.”
“Jews are facing extreme hostility based on fallacies about apartheid and genocide in a country on the other side of the world,” Samuel said. “Just bringing (the motion) up increases the concern for our safety.”
Meanwhile, Projet Montréal leader Ericka Alneus said in an interview with Montreal Gazette that the motion is in line with positions the city has taken in the past, such as when it denounced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the South African apartheid.
“This is an important message that we are putting in the motion: That we’re against antisemitism, that we’re against Islamophobia — any kind of discrimination and racism,” she said.
However, B’Nai Brith counters in the open letter that Projet Montréal is being “deceitful and inflammatory” in conflating Israel with Apartheid South Africa as part of the motion, pointing out that “Canada has rejected the view that Israel’s actions constitute apartheid.”
Meanwhile, it reads, “The war in the Middle East is highly polarizing, impacting Jewish Canadians, Israelis, Palestinians, Muslims, Iranians, and others who call this city their home.”
It adds that “all have powerful emotions and beliefs about what has happened during the past three years,” and that “Montreal must be a place for each and every one of us.”
The letter goes on to highlight the correlation between conflict in the Middle East and increases in antisemitism. Data from Statistics Canada and previously reported on by National Post showed that incidents targeting Jewish people peaked at 959 in 2023, the same year as the Oct. 7 Hamas attack. And last year’s 788 incidents was still 60 per cent higher than the 492 police reported in 2021.
Last June, thousands of Montrealers made their voices heard and played a major role in preventing the adoption of Projet Montréal’s divisive and inflammatory BDS motion. The same motion is set to come back on August 24th and city councillors will have a choice: to put Montrealers… https://t.co/UOS6LNz8J5
— CIJA (@CIJAinfo) August 12, 2026
Samuel tells National Post that while the Jewish community in Montreal and in Canada is “extremely resilient and extremely proud to be Canadian, to be Quebecer, to be Montrealer,” there is a lot of concern within the community.
“The community feels vulnerable…You don’t feel unsafe every day walking down the street, but you do feel like you have to be careful who you talk to and if you’re gonna be honest about how you feel.”
Last month, a Jewish family was subjected to antisemitic abuse during a confrontation at Montreal’s La Fontaine Park , when a woman was recorded telling them “Jews aren’t allowed here.”
Three weeks prior, several men were harassed while walking home from Shabbat services in Outremont , and three had their shtreimels snatched from their heads.
“Jewish people are, as has been well-documented in numerous surveys, reporting significant hostility and hate related to the conflict overseas,” B’nai Brith’s open letter reads. “If passed, Projet Montréal’s proposed motion would further normalize the targeting of our Jewish community.”
It concludes by accusing Projet Montréal of introducing “a policy of division, anger, and no substance.”
Meanwhile, The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs has also criticized the motion, accusing Projet Montréal of “sowing division and importing a foreign conflict into municipal politics” in a statement on Tuesday.
“In a climate that is already toxic, including arson attacks on synagogues, the hanging of a Jewish effigy in our streets, and violent assaults on community members, this declaration only adds fuel to the fire,” they said, calling on individuals to demand the withdrawal or rejection of Projet Montréal’s motion.
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