Updated

Updated · CNN International · Sep 21

Ontario Officer Critically Wounded in Yom Kippur Synagogue Shooting as SIU Probes 29-Year-Old Gunman

Updated

Updated · CNN International · Sep 21

Ontario Officer Critically Wounded in Yom Kippur Synagogue Shooting as SIU Probes 29-Year-Old Gunman

Q: What chilling motive drove an armed man to a Belleville synagogue on Yom Kippur before a heroic officer intercepted him?

The most likely motive appears to have been an antisemitic attack targeting Jewish worshippers gathered for Yom Kippur, though police had not formally confirmed motive at the time of the reports. That inference comes from key facts reported from the scene: the armed man approached the Sons of Jacob Synagogue during services, gunfire struck the building, and synagogue president Norm Weddum said the suspect was “targeting the Jewish people in the synagogue.” He said the officer, who had been hired for security, intercepted the man before he could get inside and likely saved lives. Weddum described more than 20 bullet holes in the synagogue’s windows, with congregants forced to take cover on the floor. Authorities have been more cautious publicly. Belleville police and Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit said only that an officer encountered an individual near the synagogue and that both were wounded in an exchange of gunfire. The SIU said the man was in life-threatening condition. Officials did not immediately say what led to the shooting or officially declare the synagogue the target. Still, the timing and location intensified concern. The shooting happened as Jewish community members gathered for Yom Kippur, and Ontario leaders condemned it as an attack on the right to worship safely. Toronto and other police services increased patrols around synagogues and places of worship afterward, reflecting broader fears about rising antisemitic violence.

3 articles · Updated · CNN International · Sep 21

Const. Jeff Smith was identified as the officer critically wounded after a 29-year-old man with a shotgun opened fire outside Belleville’s Sons of Jacob Synagogue during Yom Kippur services.
Preliminary SIU findings say Sean Ward arrived in a truck around 7 p.m., shot at Smith, and triggered return fire from Smith and a second officer; Ward is hospitalized in life-threatening condition.
More than 20 bullet holes were left in synagogue windows, but no worshipers were injured; the synagogue president said Smith, hired for security that day, likely saved the congregation inside.
SIU spokesperson Kristy Denette said "common sense" suggested the attack was probably terrorism, though the unit is examining police actions while Belleville police run a parallel criminal probe into motive and charges.
Mark Carney tied the shooting to Canada’s "specific, severe" antisemitism crisis and to new hate-crimes legislation, as police boosted patrols around Belleville places of worship and said no ongoing public threat was seen.