Shootout Outside Ontario Synagogue on Yom Kippur Leaves Officer, Gunman Hurt

A man opened fire on a police officer stationed outside a synagogue in Belleville, Ontario, during Yom Kippur, setting off a shootout in which as many as 30 rounds were fired, the province's police watchdog said Monday.

The 29-year-old gunman was left with life-threatening injuries, while the officer — a nearly 13-year veteran of the Belleville Police Service — was seriously wounded and remained in intensive care.

According to the Special Investigations Unit, preliminary evidence indicates the man pulled up in a truck around 7 p.m. Sunday and fired at an officer outside the Sons of Jacob Synagogue, roughly 110 miles east of Toronto. The officer shot back, and a second officer who arrived at the scene also opened fire.

SIU spokesperson Kristy Denette estimated that between 20 and 30 shots were fired. Investigators found dozens of bullet holes along the street, with homes and vehicles hit and some car windows shot out. Denette described the scene as stretching about half a block from the synagogue.

"It would have been quite, quite the scene indeed," she said.

No motive has been established, and police have not said whether the synagogue or the Jewish community was targeted. The SIU is examining the officers' conduct, while Belleville police are running a parallel criminal investigation into the man's actions and possible motive. Investigators were still piecing together the exact sequence of events and gathering body-camera and police vehicle footage, surveillance video and witness accounts.

Deputy Police Chief Sheri Meeks said the wounded officer's condition had stabilized but that he faced a long recovery. The officer joined the force in December 2013 and has been a longtime member of its Emergency Response Unit.

"We remain hopeful and encouraged by this progress," Meeks said.

She acknowledged the shooting's impact on the city's Jewish community, particularly given that it occurred outside the synagogue on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar.

"Antisemitism, hate and violence have no place in our community," Meeks said. "Every person deserves to feel safe when attending a place of worship."

Patrols and police presence were increased around places of worship, though authorities said there was no ongoing threat to public safety.

Belleville Mayor Neil Ellis said it was too early to determine whether the shooting was a hate crime, but noted that "the circumstances are where it happened, when it happened" and that it "points towards that."

"We have a tight-knit Jewish community. We don't tolerate this in our city or across the country," Ellis said. "Everyone has the right to feel safe."

Prime Minister Mark Carney condemned the shooting in a social media post, saying "Jewish people must be able to worship safely" and "live free, open, proud Jewish lives." He said the federal government would back law enforcement in holding the perpetrator accountable.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford also denounced the attack, saying Jewish people "have every right to gather and worship safely and without fear."

The shooting comes months after Carney warned that Canada was failing its Jewish community amid a rise in antisemitism, citing shootings at Jewish schools, firebombings of synagogues and attacks on community centres and Jewish-owned businesses. Synagogues in the Toronto area have been targeted by gunfire before: in March, shots damaged the entrances of synagogues in Vaughan and Toronto. No one was injured, and police later arrested three suspects.