{"id":290319,"date":"2025-11-18T04:36:13","date_gmt":"2025-11-18T04:36:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/290319\/"},"modified":"2025-11-18T04:36:13","modified_gmt":"2025-11-18T04:36:13","slug":"palestinian-flag-raised-at-toronto-city-hall-in-other-communities-across-canada","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/290319\/","title":{"rendered":"Palestinian flag raised at Toronto City Hall, in other communities across Canada"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

The Palestinian flag flies at Toronto’s City Hall on Nov. 17.Wa Lone\/Reuters<\/p>\n

Palestinian flags rose over several Canadian city halls and a provincial legislature for the first time, prompting celebration, condemnation, and a vow from one mayor to end all foreign flag-raisings. <\/p>\n

Various civilian groups requested the flag-raising to commemorate the 37th anniversary of the Palestinian Declaration of Independence on Saturday. The proclamation, issued by Palestine Liberation Organization chairman Yasser Arafat, intended to establish Palestinian sovereignty through a two-state solution grounded in international law. Canada, along with Britain, Australia and other allies, officially recognized Palestinian statehood<\/a> in September. <\/p>\n

In Toronto, dozens gathered at City Hall Monday to fly the flag<\/a> on the building\u2019s rooftop, chanting slogans and cheering, while a few pro-Israeli advocates protested nearby. Mayor Olivia Chow did not attend, as is her general policy for flag raisings.<\/p>\n

Prior to the ceremony, an Ontario Superior Court judge dismissed an injunction request from Tafsik Organization, a Canadian group fighting antisemitism, which argues the event was \u201cendorsing violence\u201d against Jewish communities.<\/p>\n

Tafsik\u2019s executive director Amir Epstein said the issue is what this specific flag has come to represent. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe Palestinian flag has become a symbol of intimidation and violence for our community,\u201d Mr. Epstein said in an interview. \u201cIt is a form of intimidation when it\u2019s raised in this way across the country. What we\u2019re seeing is causing further divisiveness and a blaming of all Jews in Canada for whatever actions are taking place in the Middle East by foreign governments.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Shane Martinez, lawyer for the Canadian chapter of the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians, contended that there was \u201cno merit\u201d to Tafsik\u2019s injunction request.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe flag celebration has actually done a lot of good for this city,\u201d he said. \u201cIt meant no harm whatsoever, which is why this group\u2019s request was denied. Their submission was based on anti-Palestinian tropes and demonstrable falsehoods, without any evidence.\u201d<\/p>\n

U.S. plan for stabilization force in Gaza gets UN Security Council approval<\/a><\/p>\n

Palestinian flags were also raised in other parts of the Greater Toronto Area, including Mississauga\u2019s and Brampton\u2019s city halls. <\/p>\n

In Calgary, Haneen Omar was among about 250 people who gathered to watch that city\u2019s flag-raising on Saturday. She said seeing the flag fly brought feelings of validation, pride, joy and also sadness, recognizing Palestine<\/a>\u2019s tumultuous path toward statehood. <\/p>\n

However, Calgary\u2019s first time raising the Palestinian flag may also be its last. Citing the division caused by foreign flag-raisings, Mayor Jeromy Farkas, elected last month, said he intends to bring forward an urgent motion on Tuesday to end the practice. <\/p>\n

\u201cThese events, even when well-intentioned, increasingly risk becoming flashpoints for conflict and for the alarming rise in antisemitism and Islamophobia we are seeing in our city,\u201d he said in a statement issued last Thursday.<\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

People gather as the Palestinian flag is raised in front of Calgary’s City Hall on Nov. 15.AHMED ZAKOT<\/p>\n

Ms. Omar, a spokesperson for the Palestinian Community Association of Calgary, expressed disappointment that a small, symbolic gesture that made her community feel included could so quickly be taken away. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe are not the occupation and we are not the resistance; we are Canadians who happen to have a Palestinian origin, just like every Canadian outside of our Indigenous communities has an origin elsewhere,\u201d she said in an interview. <\/p>\n

\u201cI would also challenge the idea that capitulating to voices of hate and intolerance is going to bring people together.\u201d <\/p>\n

Majority of Canadians support recognizing Palestinian state, poll finds<\/a><\/p>\n

In Winnipeg, a crowd of about 100 people congregated across the Manitoba Legislative Building to see the flag being raised. In a brief statement, Nellie Kennedy, the province\u2019s Minister for Culture, Heritage and Tourism, described the Saturday morning event as a powerful moment \u201cof visibility, of resilience, and of belonging\u201d that was in line with provincial standards. <\/p>\n

Sadaf Ahmed, an advocacy officer with the National Council of Canadian Muslims, said Manitoba is believed to be the first province in the country to officially raise the Palestinian flag outside its legislature.<\/p>\n

Ramsey Zeid, president of the Canadian Palestinian Association of Manitoba, said it was a day he will never forget. <\/p>\n

\u201cAfter all those years of advocating for Palestine to be officially recognized as a state, I think seeing the flag rise in that way in my home city here in Canada \u2013 like the flags of other countries we\u2019ve seen fly before without any question \u2013 was just so very emotional,\u201d Mr. Zeid said in an interview Monday. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not just a flag, though, it represents that unbroken will to survive and be free as a people like any other people.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: The Palestinian flag flies at Toronto’s City Hall on Nov. 17.Wa Lone\/Reuters Palestinian…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":290320,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[901,888,902,879,877,903,49,48,876,895,896,891,878,875,46,549,295,894,887,914,880,881,893,889,890,884,904,885,909,910,44,912,907,911,905,908,882,898,899,714,897,906,865,61,900,892,886,883,913],"class_list":["post-290319","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-canada","tag-alberta","tag-arts-news","tag-bc","tag-breaking-news","tag-breaking-news-video","tag-british-columbia","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-canada-news","tag-canada-sports","tag-canada-sports-news","tag-canada-trafficcanada-weather","tag-canadian-breaking-news","tag-canadian-news","tag-economy","tag-education","tag-environment","tag-federal-government","tag-foreign-news","tag-globe-and-mail","tag-globe-and-mail-breaking-news","tag-globe-and-mail-canada-news","tag-government","tag-life-news","tag-lifestyle","tag-local-news","tag-manitoba","tag-national-news","tag-new-brunswick","tag-newfoundland-and-labrador","tag-news","tag-northwest-territories","tag-nova-scotia","tag-nunavut","tag-ontario","tag-pei","tag-photos","tag-political-news","tag-political-opinion","tag-politics","tag-politics-news","tag-quebec","tag-sports-news","tag-technology","tag-travel","tag-trudeau","tag-us-news","tag-world-news","tag-yukon"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/290319","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=290319"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/290319\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/290320"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=290319"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=290319"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=290319"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}