Ottawa police investigating Nazi swastika spotted at pro-Palestine rally

Ottawa police say they are investigating after someone snapped a picture of a sign comparing Israel to the Nazis at Saturday's pro-Palestine rally.

The rally, which drew thousands of people, gathered on Parliament Hill Saturday afternoon before marching through downtown Ottawa. Many people waved Palestinian flags and had signs calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and condemning genocide.

• IN PICTURES: Scenes from Saturday's pro-Palestine rally in downtown Ottawa

But the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) shared an image on social media of a man holding a sign that had images of the Israel flag and a Nazi swastika, also known as a Hakenkreuz. There was text underneath each symbol, but the image shared on social media was low-resolution and the text was unclear. Some social media users have made the comparison to similar-looking signs that say "Zionism = Nazism". 

On Sunday, Ottawa police said it was aware of the image and was investigating.

"We ask anyone with information about this incident to contact police," OPS said on X.

• Complete coverage of the Israel-Hamas war

CTV News Ottawa had a camera at the rally and march on Saturday. The pictured sign was not observed in a review of raw footage recorded at the protest. 

Howard Fremeth, who took the original photo, declined to speak to CTV News Ottawa on camera but said he saw the sign on Parliament Hill at 3 p.m. Saturday. 

The image drew condemnation from political and Jewish leaders. 

"I was just aghast. It's a type of image that I couldn't imagine seeing here in Canada, nevermind Parliament Hill," said Rabbi Daniel Mikelberg, of Temple Israel Ottawa. "It's important to recognize that in the Jewish community the swastika really represents hate in its worst form. It represents a time that we were targeted for our heritage and for our faith." 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued a post on X to condemn the reported display of a Nazi swastika on the hill, as did Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre.

CTV News Ottawa reached out to organizers of Saturday's protest, but has not yet heard back.

Ottawa police have said they are concerned about a rise in hate-motivated incidents and crimes against Jewish and Muslim residents in the city since the Israel-Hamas war began on Oct. 7 when Hamas launched and attack that killed 1,400 Israelis, many of them civilians. Hamas has also taken more than 240 hostages.

On Monday, the death toll from Israel's response surpassed 10,000 in Gaza, including more than 4,100 children and 2,640 women, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza.

"Hate speech, symbols and other hate-motivated incidents are unacceptable," Police Chief Eric Stubbs said in a statement last week. "Those incidents can have a lasting impact not only on those who have been targeted, but throughout the neighbourhoods and communities where they occur."

The message came after a bomb threat was called into the Ottawa Jewish Community School on Tuesday.

Police have stepped up patrols around religious institutions and places of cultural significance since the start of the conflict. 

"The level of antisemitism that we are seeing is unfathomable. It's at levels that we haven't experienced in an extended period of time," Mikelberg said. "I'm hearing from parents who are afraid of sending their children to school. I'm hearing from children who feel the need to hide their Jewish identity."

Anyone with information is asked to contact Ottawa police at 613-236-1222 ext. 7300.

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--With files from The Associated Press.