City in Ontario refuses to shut down planned vigil in public square honoring Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas chief and architect of the October 7th massacres.
By World Israel News Staff
Pro-Hamas activists in Canada are planning to hold a public vigil honoring the architect of the October 7th massacres of Israelis, after municipal officials announced they would not interfere with the planned event.
The event is set to be held on Tuesday, November 26th, at Mississauga City Hall’s Celebration Square in Mississauga, a city of 718,000 in the greater Toronto area.
Flyers advertising the event were spotted last week, using the poppy flower symbol, established by the Royal Canadian Legion as a way to pay tribute to Canadian veterans, next to a photograph of the late Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar with the words “Lest We Forget Our Heroes: Vigil For Resistance Leaders.”
One advertisement said the event would commemorate “40 days after the Martyrdom of the leaders of Resistance fighting for Palestinian freedom.”
No organization has been linked to the planned event, with only an email address, allheavens313@gmail.com, provided in the ads.
Advertisement for a vigil honoring Yahya Sinwar in the Canadian city of Mississauga. (X)
An anti-Israel activist, Faris Al Najim, released a video on November 11th, Remembrance Day, announcing the event in honor of Sinwar.
The City of Mississauga has come under fire after city officials announced they would not be interfering with the planned event.
“The City of Mississauga has become aware of a vigil planned for November 26, 2024 to take place on Celebration Square,” city officials said in a statement.
“The City has not issued a permit for this group to host a vigil. It is not the City’s practice to issue permits for vigils as Celebration Square is a public space, usable by the community. Under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, groups have the right of freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. The City will not interfere with a peaceful vigil, as long as all laws and City by-laws are adhered to.”
Social media users were quick to point out that the event constitutes promotion of Hamas, which Canada has banned as a terror organization.
“Everybody knows if the KKK were to hold a rally honouring the death of their leader, it would not be permitted to happen any more than if a bunch of Nazis decided to mark Hitler’s birthday,” columnist Joe Warmington wrote in the Toronto Sun.
“Hamas is not any different and is a banned terror group in Canada. Celebrating them is obscene — and hurtful to the families of their victims.”
The Royal Canadian Legion has penned a cease-and-desist letter to the event’s organizers over their unauthorized use of the Legion’s poppy flower symbol.
Mississauga Mayor Carolyn Parrish defended the city’s refusal to bar the event, saying any such steps would constitute “preferential treatment.”
“That would be called censorship, preferential treatment, being judgmental — the stifling of freedom of speech which is something most Canadians value,” the mayor tweeted.
On Monday night, Parrish appeared to deny that the event was actually going to be held, suggesting the ads were part of a hoax.
“Consulted a network of Muslim organizations, serious partners in many activities of our city – coaching sports, walkathons for Trillium Hospital and diabetes. I asked them to track down the anonymous notice for a vigil at City Hall. No organization exists. No vigil is planned,” the mayor tweeted.
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