National Holocaust Monument vandalism investigated as potential hate crime
The defacement of the National Holocaust Monument in Ottawa overnight Sunday is now being investigated as a potential hate crime.
In a statement, the Ottawa Police Service said the hate and bias crime unit 'is actively leading the investigation,' after the monument, located close to Parliament Hill at 1918 Chaudière Crossing, was defaced with red paint, including lettering appearing to spell out 'feed me.'
'The desecration of Canada's Holocaust Memorial was fuelled by a climate where incendiary rhetoric and false narratives about Israel are increasingly used to target Jews in Canada and around the world,' says interim president Noah Shack at the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs.
'All levels of government across party lines spoke out against this hate crime and rallied around the principle that deliberately targeting victims of the Holocaust is not an act of protest. What's urgently needed is for our leaders to tackle the sources of hate driving vile acts of antisemitism.'
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Responses from political leaders echo others in describing the impacts this has had on local communities and across Canada as instances of antisemitism have been on the rise following the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas militants that killed 1,200 people in Israel and the Israeli military response.
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According to data from Statistics Canada, there were 900 incidents of hate crimes against the Jewish community in 2023, an increase from the 527 incidents reported in 2022.
In 2024, the number remained high at 816.
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The words 'FEED ME' are seen painted in red on the National Holocaust Monument in Ottawa on Monday, June 9, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
Prime Minister Mark Carney said on X on Monday that he is 'appalled by the National Holocaust Memorial being vandalized by graffiti overnight. This is a monument that commemorates the six million Jewish lives murdered during the Holocaust, and the millions of other victims of Nazi Germany. It is a space for mourning and remembrance, and its defacing is reprehensible.'
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The CEO and president of the Jewish Federation of Ottawa, Adam Silver, wrote in a statement that the incident was 'not merely vandalism … (but a) brazen act of desecration against the memory of six million Jews and millions of other innocent victims of the Holocaust.'
'It is a stark reminder that remembrance is not enough; we must also stand firmly against the resurgence of hatred in all its forms.'
Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre also posted on X, saying, '6 million Jewish people died at the hands of the murderous and genocidal Nazi ideology. The antisemitic thugs who vandalized the National Holocaust Monument in Ottawa should be caught and locked up for this crime. We must empower authorities to stop antisemitic lawbreakers and make Canada safe for all.'
This is also not the first time such incidents have occurred at the monument site.
The Ottawa Police Service has not said yet if anyone is in custody or if there are any suspects in the investigation, but is urging anyone with information to contact its tip line.
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