Ottawa police say knife attack on Jewish woman in her 70s was hate-motivated crime

The stabbing occurred inside the Loblaws—a major Canadian supermarket chain—located next to the Centrepointe/Craig Henry neighborhood.

By Joseph Strauss, JTA

An Ontario man has been charged with what police say appears to be a hate-motivated attack after he stabbed a Jewish woman in an Ottawa grocery store known for its large selection of kosher food.

The victim, a woman in her 70s, was taken to the hospital with “serious injuries,” according to police, and was treated and released later the same day.

The Jewish Federation of Ottawa called the victim “a cherished member of our community,” and said she is “recovering.”

The suspect, who was charged with aggravated assault and possessing a dangerous weapon, has been identified by police as Joseph Rooke, a 71-year-old man who lives in nearby Cornwall, Ontario.

A Facebook profile with matching details has posted numerous antisemitic and anti-Israel messages.

One post asked whether the loyalties of Prime Minister Mark Carney and other Members of Parliament are “grounded in the ludicrousness of judaism and all the absurdities in the lies that formed the foundation of jewish belief and ethos?”

Another called Judaism “the world’s oldest cult.”

The posts regularly condemn Israel for committing “genocide,” with one post calling Israel “a very evil state” whose “true self and jewish ethos lays hidden under a manufactured veneer of victimhood…”

“His comments online are those of a hateful man and a rabid antisemite,” B’nai Brith Canada posted on X.

“For months, B’nai Brith Canada has warned Canadian leaders of the dangers of allowing hate to foment unchecked on our streets and online platforms. Sadly, our warnings have gone unheeded.

The stabbing occurred inside the Loblaws — a major Canadian supermarket chain — located next to the Centrepointe/Craig Henry neighborhood, which is the city’s “highest concentration of Jewish community,” according to Choose Ottawa.

The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs said the store “has been the repeated target of anti-Israel protests.”

The stabbing is the latest in a string of antisemitic incidents across Canada since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack, including a Montreal synagogue being firebombed on two occasions, a Toronto Jewish girls’ school being targeted by gunfire three times the same year, and a series of bomb threats sent to dozens of Jewish institutions across the country.

Ottawa’s National Holocaust Monument was vandalized in June with red graffiti reading “FEED ME,” an apparent reference to the hunger crisis in Gaza.

“The senseless attack on a Jewish woman in an Ottawa grocery store this week is deeply disturbing,” Carney wrote on social media. “My thoughts are with her, her family, and Ottawa’s Jewish community, and my support is with law enforcement as they work to swiftly bring the perpetrator to justice.”

Carney added, “To Canada’s Jewish community: you are not alone. We stand with you against hate and threats to your safety, and we will act to confront antisemitism wherever it appears.”

Ontario Premier Doug Ford posted on X that he was “deeply disturbed by the violent attack.” “Hate, violence and antisemitism have no place in our province.”

The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs wrote online that Canada is “at a tipping point” with antisemitism.

“We call on all levels of government to act urgently and decisively to ensure the safety and security of Jewish Canadians,” the post read.

“Condemnations are not enough—Canada must take concrete steps to protect its citizens and put an end to the spread of violent antisemitism in our communities.”