In Canada, Ontario, a man driving a pick-up truck rams a Muslim family killing 4 members while 9-year-old battling for his life.
The tragedy occurred on Sunday the family was taking a walk on the curb and the pickup truck jumped the curb and rammed over them. The Canadian police state it was an attack “motivated by hate” in a “deliberately targeted anti-Islamic hate crime.
“It was pre-planned and premeditated and that’s why first-degree murder charges were laid,” London Detective Superintendent Paul Waight told reporters on Monday.
“There is evidence that this was … motivated by hate. It is believed that these victims were targeted because they were Muslim,” Waight said.
Waight said police in London, about 200 km southwest of Toronto, were working with the Royal Mounted Canadian Police on potentially filing terrorism charges.
Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau expressed his shock tweeting, “I’m horrified by the news from London, Ontario. To the loved ones of those who were terrorized by yesterday’s act of hatred, we are here for you. We are also here for the child who remains in hospital – our hearts go out to you, and you will be in our thoughts as you recover.”
I’m horrified by the news from London, Ontario. To the loved ones of those who were terrorized by yesterday’s act of hatred, we are here for you. We are also here for the child who remains in hospital – our hearts go out to you, and you will be in our thoughts as you recover.
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) June 7, 2021
To the Muslim community in London and to Muslims across the country, know that we stand with you. Islamophobia has no place in any of our communities. This hate is insidious and despicable – and it must stop.
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) June 7, 2021
Sana Saeed said, “Canada is not a liberal, multicultural haven just because we have healthcare, gun laws & brown people in government.
Canada is built on hatred – the recently unearthed 215 bodies of indigenous children and last night’s hate crime killing a Muslim family are testament to that.
Canada is not a liberal, multicultural haven just because we have healthcare, gun laws & brown people in government.
Canada is built on hatred – the recently unearthed 215 bodies of indigenous children and last night's hate crime killing a Muslim family are testament to that.
— Sana Saeed (@SanaSaeed) June 7, 2021
Canada is built on hatred – the recently unearthed 215 bodies of indigenous children and last night’s hate crime killing a Muslim family are testament to that.
A 20-year-old suspect Canadian Nathaniel Veltman has been arrested at a mall seven kilometers from the intersection crosswalk in London, Ontario where it happened, and has been charged with four counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.
A 74-year woman died on the scene, a 46-year-old male, a 44-year-old female, and a 15-year-old female died after being taken to the hospital, police said. A nine-year-old boy survived and is in the hospital battling for his life.
“We grieve for the family, three generations of whom are now deceased,” London’s Mayor Ed Holder told reporters at a virtual press conference held jointly with the police.
“This was an act of mass murder, perpetrated against Muslims, against Londoners, and rooted in unspeakable hatred.”
This vicious attack was the worst against Canadian Muslims since a man gunned down six members of a Quebec City mosque in 2017.
Especially since the September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States, a number of surveys and polls, as well as reported incidents, have consistently given assent to the existence of Islamophobia in Canada. The amount of police-reported hate crimes hitting Muslims in Canada more than tripled between 2012 and 2015, despite the overall number of such crimes decreasing over the same period, according to Statistics Canada data. Statistics Canada does state, however, that “an increase in numbers may be related to more reporting by the public”.
In 2015, police across the country recorded 159 hate crimes aimed at Muslims, up from 45 in 2012, representing an increase of 253%.
Islamophobia has revealed itself as the destruction of mosques and physical assaults on Muslims, including violence against Muslim women wearing the hijab or niqab. In January 2017, six Muslims were killed in a shooting attack at a Quebec City Mosque. The number of Islamophobic incidents has significantly increased in the last two years. Islamophobia has been condemned by Canadian governments on the federal, provincial, and municipal levels.
The Canadian media have played a complex role in their coverage of Islamophobia, and have been described as having perpetuated it and/or countered it for Canadian audiences. Canada’s public education system has also been scrutinized for its role as the site of Islamophobic incidents and of the development of Islamophobic attitudes in youth.