A protest speaker said that Zionists rape, kill, and eat children, and he invoked other conspiracy theories at a demonstration in the Jewish neighborhood of Bathurst Street and Sheppard Avenue West in Toronto yesterday.
Video footage of the speech was shared on social media by the X/Twitter account Leviathan, identifying it as taking place at a pro-Palestine protest that took place yesterday.
Leviathan is an X account dedicated, in its words, to naming “Jihadists, Antisemites, Anarchists & other threats. Using OSINT [open-source intelligence] to notify for Public Interest” in Canada.
According to the account, the speaker is a Toronto-based university instructor and faculty lecturer named Abbas Hamze.
Speaker invokes antisemitic conspiracy theories at Toronto protest
The video captures a speaker telling an audience, “The British colonizers have planted this cancerous, this cancerous, false Zionist state of Israel. It’s Falasteen [Palestine].”
He asserted, “These Zionists have never had a country of their own because of their mischief; they are the most kicked-out people in the world for making black magic and horrible things.”
He further said, “We can see the corruption crystal clear in the Epstein Island where they have seduced leaders from all around the world, including Trump. They have raped and killed and eaten children at the same time. They have done the unimaginable to blackmail them and control them.”
In a separate post on X from May, Leviathan wrote, “Hamze is a Master Sessional & Master of Data Analytics Instructor with University of Niagara Falls, a Faculty Lecturer at Georgian College, and a College Lecturer for Conestoga College.”
It added, “Abbas Hamze also calls for the kidnapping of Israeli hostages, stating that ‘Hamas has the right to take hostages on October 7th 2023,’ while also claiming ‘Hezbollah has the right to assist Hamas on October 8th,’” Leviathan wrote, citing alleged social media posts by Hamze.
Leviathan said that the Toronto Police Service had provided Hamze with “an armed escort” as he “protests at Jewish neighborhoods, schools, and synagogues” and that he “came to Canada from France in August of 2022 & is not believed to be a Canadian citizen.”
Referring to accompanying screenshots alleged to be from Hamze’s social media posts, Leviathan added, “Abbas Hamze has also been pictured holding up flags of the Islamic Republic of Iran in this Jewish neighborhood while also writing, ‘We will continue the path of Imam Khamenei, no matter how many sacrifices are made, and his pure blood will bear the inevitable victory.’”
B’nai Brith calls on Toronto Police to investigate
Richard Robertson, B’nai Brith Canada’s director of Research and Advocacy, said in a statement to The Jerusalem Post, “The ongoing anti-Israel protests at Bathurst and Sheppard continue to be a source of hate and incitement.
“Incidents such as those which occurred this weekend are the result of the permissive environment that has been created at the intersection since October 7, 2023. Antisemitism is becoming normalized on Toronto’s streets.”
He added, “When classical antisemitic tropes, such as that Jews use ‘black magic’ and eat children, are broadcast in public using a megaphone, there is no ambiguity. It is the wilful promotion and public incitement of hate.
“Toronto Police must investigate the incident as such and hold those responsible accountable. They must also reexamine their approach to protests at Bathurst and Sheppard; there must be a zero tolerance for turning our streets into platforms from which to incite and promote hatred.”
Recurring Toronto protests draw scrutiny amid antisemitism concerns
The demonstration took place amid heightened tensions surrounding recurring protests at the Bathurst Street and Sheppard Avenue West intersection.
These regular rallies in the heavily Jewish residential neighborhood have drawn intense community concern and scrutiny, leading to multiple police interventions and the recent arrest of activists, including two individuals detained by the Toronto Police Service on charges of the willful promotion of hatred and public incitement of hatred.
Ongoing hate propaganda investigations stem from demonstrations earlier in the year when suspects allegedly retrieved antisemitic signs from a storage locker before marching toward counter-protesters while shouting derogatory slurs.
In recent months, there has been a broader national surge in antisemitic attacks targeting Jewish and Israeli institutions across Canada.
According to reports and tracking data released by advocacy groups such as B’nai Brith Canada and the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), violent offenses have risen sharply, marked by high-profile episodes such as targeted shootings and vandalism at Jewish-owned commercial establishments like branches of Toronto’s Kiva’s Bagel Bar, gunfire incidents directed at Jewish schools, and a suspected arson attack targeting the kosher establishment Nöam restaurant in Montreal.