TORONTO — The rabbi of a Toronto synagogue says Hanukkah celebrations would continue as planned in the wake of a deadly mass shooting at a Hanukkah celebration in Australia on Sunday.
Levi Gansburg, the rabbi at Chabad on Bayview, says his synagogue will “choose light over darkness” and move forward with its planned Hannukah celebrations this week despite the devastation abroad.
At least 16 people were killed and at least 38 were wounded at a Hanukkah event on Bondi Beach in Australia after two gunmen opened fire on the crowd. Jewish officials have identified one of the dead as Rabbi Eli Schlanger, an assistant rabbi at Chabad of Bondi and one of the celebration’s organizers.
One attacker was taken into custody and the other was fatally shot by police. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called the shooting an act of antisemitic terrorism that struck at the heart of the nation.
Gansburg says he was in a state of shock and mourning when he first heard the news of the shooting. He said he knew Schlanger as the two studied together in the rabbinical seminary.
“My memories of him is that he was a man of kindness, of warmth, of love,” Gansburg said in an interview. “He was vivacious, (and) just literally dedicated his life to helping others strictly with goodness and kindness.”
That shock was numbed, however, by a spate of antisemitic attacks and vandalism that have rocked the GTA since Oct. 7, 2023. Gansburg says a synagogue down the road from him — the Kehillat Shaarei Torah synagogue — has been vandalized 10 times and his daughter’s school was shot at three times last year.
For Joe Kanofsky, the rabbi at the Kehillat Shaarei Torah, the attacks in Australia are another unneeded reminder of hatred and violence directed toward the Jewish community.
“I and others are horrified and appalled by this kind of violence,” Kanofsky said.
Kanofsky says Hanukkah celebrations at his synagogue will also proceed as planned this week. Security will be on site throughout celebrations, although Kanofsky says this has been the case since 2018 after a gunman killed 11 worshippers at a synagogue in Pittsburgh.
Gansburg and Kanofsky said they have both been in touch with Toronto police requesting added measures to ensure the community’s safety.
Toronto police say the force is closely monitoring the events in Australia and says people can expect to see “increased police presence in the Jewish community as a proactive measure to ensure the safety and security of the community.”
In the Montreal area, Rabbi Lisa Grushcow, of the Temple Emanu-El-Beth Sholom, says the timing of the attack was likely an intentional message designed to instil fear in Jewish people at the start of Hanukkah.
“This is a message that says, you’re not safe to celebrate your holiday,” she said.
The response, she said, is to not be deterred from marking the holiday, while working with police and security organizations to make sure people are safe at gatherings and candle-lighting ceremonies.
She said Hanukkah is not only a celebration of light and hope and resilience, but also a historical holiday that “remembers the time in Jewish history when there was a lot of pressure against being Jewish, against celebrating how we celebrate, and holding on to the identity that we have that’s distinct and unique,” she said. “So I think part of the response has to just be to lean into being who we are, to not be afraid to turn up for Hanukkah parties and services.”
Grushcow said the tragedy will likely make some synagogues more reticent to publicize the exact details of their gatherings. However, she encouraged members of the wider public to ask their Jewish friends, colleagues and neighbours if there are any Hanukkah events they can show up at to show solidarity – similar to the “rings of peace” that formed around mosques at prayer time following Islamophobic attacks.
“I do think there’s an opportunity to really show solidarity and support in concrete ways,” she said.
Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a social media post he is “horrified by the antisemitic terror attack that has stolen the lives of 11 people.”
“Canada stands with the people of Australia and Jewish people everywhere in sorrow, and determination never to bow to terrorism, violence, hatred and intimidation,” Carney wrote.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford also paid tribute to Australia’s Jewish community, saying in an X post he is “praying for the victims and their loved ones.”
Montreal Mayor Soraya Martinez Ferrada called the attack on Australia heartbreaking and said she spoke with Montreal police to ensure officers have increased vigilance to support the city’s Jewish community.
“These communities are feeling anxious, and with our police we are there to support them,” Ferrada said in a statement.
Montreal police confirmed in their own statement the force is increasing its “vigilance and visibility” in areas where Hanukkah celebrations are taking place.
National Jewish groups also condemned the attack. The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs CEO Noah Shack said in a statement his group is “devastated by the horrifying scenes in Sydney” and that the group stands in solidarity with Australia’s Jewish community.
Shack also says the shooting in Australia is another example of the “unchecked rise of violent antisemitic extremism.” He called on all levels of government to take the necessary steps to keep the Jewish community safe.
“Canada is not immune,” Shack wrote. “We need urgent action from governments and law enforcement to keep all of us safe.”
— with files from Morgan Lowrie in Montreal and The Associated Press
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 14, 2025.
Cassidy McMackon, The Canadian Press
