Sunday, June 7, 2026
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

Statistics Canada surplus of millions of dollars

Statistics Canada surplus of millions of dollars
Canada posted a merchandise trade surplus of 972-million-dollars in March as imports fell more than exports. Statistics Canada reports that was up from a revised deficit of 487-million-dollars in February. 

Statistics Canada surplus of millions of dollars

Public Service Alliance reaches deal ending strike

Public Service Alliance reaches deal ending strike
The federal government has reached a tentative four-year deal with 35-thousand striking workers at the Canada Revenue Agency. It mirrors several elements of the deal that the Public Service Alliance of Canada negotiated earlier this week with other striking civil servants.

Public Service Alliance reaches deal ending strike

Health services facility for DTES residents

Health services facility for DTES residents
The Vancouver Urban Health Centre is located at 219 Main Street and is open Monday to Friday from 9 a-m to 5 p-m. Dr. Brian Conway, the centre's medical director, says the goal is to build on the community pop-up clinics his team has offered on the Downtown Eastside for years.

Health services facility for DTES residents

BC to address non-consensual sharing of intimate images

BC to address non-consensual sharing of intimate images
Niki Sharma told the legislature in March that the government is proposing a law that would create new legal rights and remedies to stop the distribution of such images and to seek compensation for those who are harmed.  

BC to address non-consensual sharing of intimate images

B.C.'s Cache Creek becomes raging river as floodwaters rise: mayor

B.C.'s Cache Creek becomes raging river as floodwaters rise: mayor
B.C.'s River Forecast Centre has issued two flood warnings, its highest-level bulletin, while several lower-level flood watches and high streamflow advisories covered much of the province's northern, central and southern Interior on Wednesday.

B.C.'s Cache Creek becomes raging river as floodwaters rise: mayor

Bust results in seizure of cash and drugs: Kelowna RCMP

Bust results in seizure of cash and drugs: Kelowna RCMP
The officer stopped a green 1997 Toyota Corolla on April 29th after it failed to stop for a pedestrian crossing the street at a marked crosswalk. When the officer had the driver exit the vehicle on suspicion of driving under the influence, a clear baggy of suspected drugs fell to the ground.

Bust results in seizure of cash and drugs: Kelowna RCMP