A shooting outside the Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Belleville, Ontario, on the evening of September 24, the eve of Yom Kippur, left the local Jewish community shaken but may have averted a far worse tragedy thanks to a timely police presence. About two dozen congregants were inside the synagogue at the time of the attack, which involved approximately 30 gunshots. Twenty-three of those shots struck the building’s stained glass windows.

Douglas Lobel, a witness and attendee, said the community believes the synagogue was targeted due to the timing and the gathering of Jewish worshippers inside. “It definitely would have been a massacre” if police had not been on site, Lobel said. The synagogue’s president, Norm Weddum, initially reported the gunfire after investigating sounds heard during the service.

The suspect, identified as 29-year-old Sean Ward, and Belleville police officer Constable Jeff Smith were both wounded and transported to hospital. Smith is in critical but stable condition, while Ward’s condition is described as life-threatening.

In response, Canadian Jewish advocacy organizations, including the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs and Jewish Federations of Canada, issued statements connecting the shooting to rising anti-Zionism, which they argue fuels violence against Jewish Canadians. They called for governments to acknowledge anti-Zionism as a driver of antisemitism and emphasized that Jewish community members should not require armed police protection simply to pray safely.

The Conference of Presidents, a coalition of American Jewish groups, urged authorities in Canada and globally to address antisemitism and related extremist violence with urgency to prevent further loss of life.

This incident follows a pattern of rising antisemitic acts in Canada. Earlier in the year, Prime Minister Mark Carney expressed concern that the government was not doing enough to protect the Jewish community amid a surge in attacks, including shootings, firebombings, and vandalism of Jewish schools, synagogues, and businesses. His administration has since allocated millions of dollars to enhance security measures at faith-based institutions.

Toronto itself has seen similar threats. In March, gunfire damaged two synagogues in Vaughan and Toronto, though no injuries were reported. Police have increased patrols in places of worship and heightened their presence as a precaution, emphasizing there is currently no known link between those incidents and the shooting in Belleville.

Jewish advocacy group B’nai Brith Canada published a report highlighting a significant rise in antisemitic incidents across the country, documenting 6,800 anti-Jewish occurrences in 2025—a figure twice that of 2023 and nearly 10 percent higher than in 2024.

Authorities continue to investigate the shooting in Belleville as the community grapples with the trauma and the broader implications of repeated attacks on Jewish institutions nationwide.