Man arrested after attempting to cut Israeli kitchen tent at Edmonton Heritage Festival

An incident at the Edmonton Heritage Festival saw a man arrested after he attempted to slash an Israeli tent with a knife. Social media footage captured the moment an individual tried to cut the tent before security officers detained him amid chants of “All the Zionists are racists.”

Stacey Leavitt-Wright, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Edmonton, confirmed the event and stated that police are investigating. The assailant reportedly entered the Israeli Pavilion area and approached the kitchen tent. A volunteer alerted security, and as the attacker lunged with a knife, another volunteer pulled him away. Security guards then subdued him near a perimeter fence.

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All the Zionists are racists

The incident coincided with a protest organized by local Jewish anti-Zionist groups, including Independent Jewish Voices Edmonton and Edmonton Jews Against Zionism, in coordination with the MacEwan chapter of the Palestinian Student Alliance. These groups had called for the exclusion of the Israel Pavilion from the festival.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators held signs denouncing Zionism, while Iranian supporters of Israel countered with Israeli flags and chants. Leavitt-Wright noted that despite the incident, many attendees expressed support for the pavilion, stating the protest was not in the spirit of the festival, which has hosted the Israel Pavilion for over 45 years. The event follows a pattern of escalating threats and violence against Jewish institutions nationally.

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They tried to shut down our pavilion. In spite of this incident, we were heartened that there were so many people who came to us to express their support and how upset they were to see this demonstration. It is not in the spirit of the festival. We have participated every year for over 45 years