Ottawa looking to reverse course on Israel national day event, says Mayor Sutcliffe

Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe says he wants the city to reverse course after cancelling an event to mark Israel’s national day.

“Over the past two days, I have listened carefully to members of the community and I agree that they, and everyone in our community, should be able to hold events in public spaces without fear of threats and intimidation,” wrote Sutcliffe on X.

Officials announced on Tuesday they planned to raise the Israeli flag at city hall next week, but they cancelled the usual ceremony, saying it posed a risk to public safety.

The decision was panned by Jewish community advocates and politicians, including Sutcliffe.

The mayor says he has asked the city, police and the Jewish Federation of Ottawa to co-ordinate an event that protects everyone’s safety.

“We must ensure that members of the Jewish community – and all residents of our city – can gather whenever they choose to do so in safety, and free from intimidation and fear. We must continue to support our Jewish community, which is experiencing increasingly higher levels of anti-semitism. Let’s all work together to ensure our city is safe and free from violence and racism in all its forms.”

Mayor Mark Sutcliffe

The group Ottawa 4 Palestine shared on social media last week that it planned to “shut down the Zionist flag-raising event.” 

Ottawa police would not answer questions about the plans, or about the nature of the security threat.

With files from the Canadian Press