Terry Newman: Montreal anti-Zionists laud terror on Oct. 7 anniversary

Montreal for Palestine protesters hold the group's banner to take pictures before marching. Oct. 7, 2026. Photo by Terry Newman /National Post

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MONTREAL — Wednesday was the third anniversary of Hamas’s brutal October 7 attacks. This year, unlike last, few students showed up to celebrate on McGill University’s campus where Jewish students held a vigil on its field. A small crowd organized by Students for Palestine’s Honour and Resistance (SPHR) McGill appeared at the Roddick Gates at 2 p.m. but were drowned out by a counter-protest of Quebecois and Iranians.

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But after 6 p.m., Montreal for Palestine, an anti-Zionist group that has occupied the streets of Montreal consistently since the attacks, made a larger and more virulent showing. When I asked one of its leaders why they were inverting October 7 — a day that could easily be referred to as an attempted genocide of Israelis — one of its leaders made it clear that they had no qualms about the attacks by the terrorist group Hamas on that day.

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While several anti-Zionist events were planned for downtown Montreal on the third anniversary of Hamas’s October 7 invasion of Israel, in which about 1,200 were killed and 251 were abducted, the daytime campus events were nothing like the ones I reported on last year, when thousands of students and some teachers amassed on McGill’s lawn after migrating from Concordia University.

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Like last year, 9/11 propaganda flyers were handed out, and some “Profs for Palestine” made an appearance at McGill, but the day was nothing like last year. On this third anniversary, Jews with Israeli flags held a peaceful, undisturbed vigil on the campus lawn.

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A peaceful vigil in remembrance of the third anniversary of October 7 was held on McGill University’s lawn. Oct. 7, 2026 Photo by Terry Newman /National Post

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At 2 p.m., a group with Quebec and Iranian Lion and Sun flags gathered outside the university’s Roddick Gates to counter the SPHR rally taking place at the same time. Police stood between the two groups. SPHR chanted the usual phrases but were drowned out by the other group, which shouted, “Houthi, Hamas, Hezbollah — terrorists, terrorists,” and whose speaker, Iranian Ayrik Armani, told them, “You have never respected Canada. You have never respected Quebec,” and reminded them that they had smashed university windows, among other things.

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Students for Palestine’s Honour and Resistance (SPHR) McGill appeared at the Roddick Gates at 2 p.m. but were drowned out by a counter-protest of Quebecois and Iranians. Iranian Ayrik Armani tells SPHR: “You have never respected Canada. You have never respected Quebec.” Photo by Terry Newman /National Post

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Like last year, the evening rally was a hellscape, though with fewer numbers. That’s because these evening protests are organized by Montreal for Palestine, a group that has occupied Montreal’s streets for the last three years.

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At 6 p.m., Montreal for Palestine gathered at the Roddick Gates and prepped protesters for their march. They included their usual chants: “From the river to the sea,”Long live the intifada” and “One solution … revolution.” One of its leaders, Bara Abuhamed, opened with a short prayer and said he supports Indigenous-Canadians in their “fight against the occupiers,” meaning other Canadians.