Pro-Palestine Rioters in Montreal Set Cars Ablaze, Smash Windows as NATO Delegates Meet

File photo shows police watching as people march near McGill University campus during a pro-Palestinian demonstration in Montreal on Oct. 7, 2024. The Canadian Press/Christinne Muschi

Montreal police say that at least three arrests were made after cars were burned and windows smashed during a pro-Palestinian protest on the first night of a NATO meeting in the city.

Police said the individuals were arrested on Nov. 22 after a demonstration that began in the afternoon and resulted in car fires and smashed windows at some businesses.

Smoke bombs were deployed and metal barriers were tossed into the street during the march, police said. Windows of the convention centre were also smashed by protesters.

The riot happened on the first day of the four-day NATO summit, which 300 delegates are expected to attend.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued a statement on the riots on Nov. 23, saying what unfolded was “appalling.”

“Acts of antisemitism, intimidation, and violence must be condemned wherever we see them,” Trudeau said. “The RCMP are in communication with local police. There must be consequences, and rioters held accountable.”

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly, whose riding is in Montreal, told reporters on Nov. 23 that the protesters’ actions are unacceptable.

“What we saw was not peaceful protest. What we saw was actually violence, hate, and anti-Semitism, and this has no place on our streets,” Joly said during a news conference at the International Security Forum in Halifax.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre condemned the riots in a statement on Nov. 22.

“Violent mobs riot and rampage through beautiful Montreal, typifying the chaos that is engulfing our once-peaceful country after 9 years of Trudeau’s radical, divisive agenda,” he wrote in a Nov. 22 post on X. “Trudeau fiddles while Montreal burns.”

Conservative MP and deputy leader Melissa Lantsman called the riots a display of complete lawlessness.

“Bring back law and order, safe streets and communities in the Canada we once knew and loved,” Lantsman wrote in a Nov. 22 post on X

Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante said the riots had no place in her city.

“The excesses of the demonstration last night are shocking and have no place in a peaceful metropolis like Montreal. Neither chaos, violence nor trouble towards merchants are tolerated and I thank the [Montreal Police] who made several arrests yesterday,” she said in a Nov. 23 post on X.

Quebec Premier François Legault also condemned the violence.

“The violent and hateful scenes we witnessed last night in the streets of Montreal, with attacks specifically targeting the Jewish community, are unacceptable,” he said on Nov. 23.

“Burning cars and smashing windows is not sending a message, it is causing chaos. Such acts have no place in a peaceful society like Quebec.”

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.