Jewish Real Estate Agent Attacked in Toronto in Suspected Hate Crime

Joseph Biton, a Jewish real estate agent from Toronto, was violently attacked in a shopping center while on his way to meet a client. Biton reported that his assailant identified himself as a Houthi Muslim from Yemen and threatened to kill him due to the ongoing war in Israel. The attacker accused Biton of supporting Israel, which he claimed was committing genocide against Palestinians, and proceeded to throw parking pylons, bricks, stones, and metal rods at him, also striking him with a thick tree branch. Biton sustained scratches but emphasized that the psychological impact was the most severe, stating, "This is not the Canada I grew up in and lived in for the past 64 years."

Biton called the Toronto Police, who responded promptly, arrested the suspect, and launched an investigation treating the incident as a hate crime against Jews. This attack comes amid a sharp rise in antisemitic incidents in Canada following the October 7, 2023, attacks in Israel. These incidents include shootings, Molotov cocktail attacks, arson against Jewish institutions such as synagogues and schools, and several foiled terror plots targeting the Jewish community involving explosives, shootings, and axe and knife attacks.