Iranian Canadians and Jewish groups transformed the worried eyes to the Middle East on Sunday, while the United States against three Iranian nuclear sites raised fears of climbing violence.
Nimâ Machouf, member of an association of Iranian women in Montreal, said that family members in Iran lived “from one bomb to another”.
“I am very worried because it will only accelerate violence in the region,” she said during a telephone interview. “This will worsen the problem and get us more away from peace.”
Machouf, who is also an epidemiologist and former NPD candidate, believes that strikes will only harm people who are fighting to free themselves from Iran’s repressive regime.
The attacks of other countries mean that the Iranian people “are not protected by their government, nor protected by others, by the international community,” she said. “So people feel abandoned by everyone, everywhere.”
The United States has inserted itself into the War of Israel against Iran early on Sunday when it launched strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites.
The Toronto and Vancouver police have published messages on the social media platform X, confirming an increase in the police presence in the two cities while the authorities monitor the situation in the Middle East.
The Toronto police station said that more police presence “could be expected wherever necessary”, while the Vancouver police said that more officers and resources would be deployed in “certain places of worship, cultural and community centers and diplomatic buildings”.
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“Conflicts in the Middle East are thousands of kilometers, but they have repercussions closely in our diversified community and have an impact on the feeling of safety of the many peoples,” said the Vancouver police station, adding that more agents have also been deployed to ensure that the “remain legal” protests.
“We listen to local religious leaders and representatives of the community of countries affected by conflicts … Our priority is your security.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney wrote on social networks that US military action has been designed to alleviate the “serious threat” of Iran’s nuclear program represents international security. “Canada has always been clear that Iran can never be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon,” he wrote.
But Carney said that the situation in the Middle East was “very volatile” and urged the parties to return to the negotiation table and reach a diplomatic solution.
The acting president of the Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs described the Iranian nuclear program on Sunday as a “serious danger to world peace and security”.
“The elimination of this threat is an essential step towards the realization of a safer Middle East and a safer and peaceful world,” wrote Noah Shack, who urged the federal government to “stand very much against the Iranian threat”.
Kaveh Shahrooz, lawyer and principal member of the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, said many Iranians are concerned about the impact of the American decision on civilians.
“I think there are a lot of (concern) simply because there are a lot of unknowns,” he said.
Shahroooz said the Iranian regime has practically no protection to its own citizens in the form of sirens or air raid shelters, and that the Internet was cut.
“So there is a lot of fear of what we will discover once the Internet connection is restored and that we are able to speak to our families again,” he said.
Shahroooz said the feelings between the Iranian diaspora of Canada vary, from anger at the strikes to support American actions.
“Among the people who do not support the Iran regime, I think there are some who applaud and who say that it was expected for a long time,” he said. “And they are happy to see the nuclear program of the Iranian regime have actually dismantled and to see this diet humiliated.”
On the other hand, Machouf called any suggestion that Israel “will unleash” the Iranian people of “masquerade” and declared that the change of diet must come from the interior.
Gur Tsabar, a spokesperson for the Jews called no to the genocide, said that a rally called “Hands Off Iran” was organized for Sunday afternoon in Toronto to demand sanctions in Israel and a double-meaning arms embargo. He described the recent Israeli and American actions in Iran as “beyond the inconvenience”.
Tsabar said that the rally scheduled for Sunday afternoon is co-organized by 16 groups, including the Iranian Canadian Congress, the Palestinian Young Movement, the Jews say no to the genocide and a number of unions.
& Copy 2025 the Canadian press