Wednesday, December 17, 2025
ADVT 
National

Eby deplores 'most hateful' speech praising Hamas attack, as UBC protest camp begins

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 29 Apr, 2024 03:21 PM
  • Eby deplores 'most hateful' speech praising Hamas attack, as UBC protest camp begins

Charlotte Kates of the Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network told the rally outside the Vancouver Art Gallery on Friday that the attack was "heroic and brave." 

Eby said the comments about the attack, that killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were "the most hateful" he could imagine.

"Celebrating the murder, the rape of innocent people attending a music festival, it's awful," Eby said at an unrelated news conference on Monday. 

"It's reprehensible, and it shouldn't take place in British Columbia. There is clearly an element of some individuals using an international tragedy to promote hate that's completely unacceptable."

Kates and Samidoun did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Eby also remarked on an encampment by pro-Palestinian protesters that began at the University of B.C. on Monday. 

Similar camps have appeared on campuses across the United States, as well as at McGill University in Montreal and the University of Ottawa.

At McGill, activists have set up dozens of tents. The university said Monday morning it had seen video evidence of some protesters using "unequivocally antisemitic language and intimidating behaviour" during the protest.

The UBC camp included about 20 tents on MacInnes Field by noon Monday.

Eby said a university campus, while a protected space for free speech, should foster a safe space for students of all backgrounds, especially for Jewish students during a time they feel "particularly alone on campuses and need additional support to feel safe."

"I have no reason to doubt that the leadership, both student and administration, at UBC will find that balance between ensuring students are safe and making sure that atmosphere of free exchange of ideas can continue to take place on campus."

In a series of messages posted on social media platform X, UBC protest organizers have asked supporters to bring tents and sandbags, as well as food, water, first aid and generators.

Naisha Khan, a spokeswoman for the protest camp, said tents started going up at 5 a.m. Monday, with attendees from UBC, Simon Fraser University and Emily Carr University of Art and Design.

Khan said they wouldn't leave until UBC supported the Palestinian right to "resistance," and the right of return to what is now Israel.

In a written response, UBC spokesman Matthew Ramsey said the school is monitoring the situation and keeping in contact with the RCMP.

Protests must "be taken with respect for others and within the boundaries of university policy and the law," he said.

"We also remind everyone that hate and intolerance have no place at UBC," Ramsey said. "The university must be a place of reasoned debate where conflicting views can peacefully coexist."

Before Eby, the Vancouver Art Gallery rally had drawn condemnation from Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim, who called it a "celebration of terrorism and antisemitism."

Sim said in a post on X on Sunday that people who "spew this vile hatred" were not welcome in the city.

Liberal member for Vancouver Granville Taleeb Noormohamed said on X that "glorifying Oct. 7 is unacceptable" and "does nothing to promote peace," while B.C. Opposition Leader Kevin Falcon called the speech a "celebration of the heinous murder of Jews."

MORE National ARTICLES

B.C. funds project to extract minerals, metals while reducing environmental impacts

B.C. funds project to extract minerals, metals while reducing environmental impacts
The British Columbia government is funding a pilot project that it says offers the mining industry a path to significantly reduce the environmental impacts of extracting critical minerals. A statement from the province says Vancouver-based PH7 Technologies Inc. has developed a "closed-loop" process using chemistry to extract and refine critical minerals and help the industry transition to renewable energy.

B.C. funds project to extract minerals, metals while reducing environmental impacts

Richmond businesses fraud

Richmond businesses fraud
A police statement says the businesses have lost tens of thousands of dollars. The Mounties say the fraudsters appear to be intercepting and cashing cheques from the businesses that are being mailed using a nearby Canada Post mailbox.

Richmond businesses fraud

B.C. to add 500 public electric vehicle charging stations to fill gaps in network

B.C. to add 500 public electric vehicle charging stations to fill gaps in network
Drivers of electric vehicles in British Columbia can expect another 500 public charging stations to come online, adding to more than 5,000 available across the province. A statement from the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation says it's providing $30 million from this year's budget to expand B.C.'s "electric highway."

B.C. to add 500 public electric vehicle charging stations to fill gaps in network

B.C. funds 2,000 new affordable homes for renters in Metro Vancouver

B.C. funds 2,000 new affordable homes for renters in Metro Vancouver
Premier David Eby made the announcement at a construction site in Surrey, B.C., on Tuesday, saying the latest intake of the Building BC Community Housing Fund will bring new homes to every region in the province.

B.C. funds 2,000 new affordable homes for renters in Metro Vancouver

Stabbing on bus in Surrey

Stabbing on bus in Surrey
Surrey RCMP are looking for a man who allegedly stabbed a person on a transit bus in the city. They say officers responded to find a man in his 20s suffering from stab wounds and he was transported to the hospital.

Stabbing on bus in Surrey

Alleged assault at Guildford Mall

Alleged assault at Guildford Mall
Mounties say firefighters called them to an event at Surrey’s Guildford Town Centre on Saturday night for a possible assault. They say officers were attempting to determine what had happened when a fight broke out.

Alleged assault at Guildford Mall