Vancouver Police increasing presence to provide sense of safety in lead up to October 7

As the one-year anniversary of the October 7th attacks on Israel approaches, tensions are expected to rise, and the Vancouver Police Department is on high alert.

The VPD tells 1130 NewsRadio it will be “taking a number of steps – both overt and covert – to provide a sense of comfort and safety,” in anticipation of emotionally charged protests across the city.

“We are currently reviewing all intelligence and working with community partners to determine how to most effectively deploy our officers during the coming week,” said Sgt. Steve Addison. “We will provide more specific information in the coming days.”

While the VPD aims to provide a sense of security, Temple Shalom Senior Rabbi Dan Moskovitz expresses concern for the well-being of Vancouver’s Jewish community.

“Anti-semitism has been increasing significantly. We’ve seen more violent attacks against our community,” Rabbi Moskovitz said.

VPD data revealed that reported hate crimes in Vancouver surged by 30 per cent in 2023 compared to the previous year, with the Israel-Hamas conflict cited as a major contributing factor.

Rabbi Moskovitz says he’s also disturbed by the thought of protests on October 7.

“Why protest? Except for to celebrate Hamas, to celebrate them taking hostages, the murdering of innocent civilians. I think that anybody that goes out to a protest is complicit with the terrorists and their terrorizing of human beings,” Moskovitz said.

Additionally, the Rabbi voiced his growing disillusionment with the enforcement of provincial law, urging the Attorney General to issue a public statement condemning hatred and anti-semitism that may arise during potential protests.

“We need to not just tell people to calm down, but actually enforce our anti-intimidation and anti-hate speech laws. And that’s something our Attorney General needs to direct local law enforcement to do.”

1130 NewsRadio has reached out to the Attorney General’s office for comment.