Canada is failing the Jewish community and Jews are being targeted, Prime Minister Carney says

TORONTO (AP) — Canada is failing Jewish Canadians and the community is being brutally targeted by hate, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Monday.

Carney said across Canada, antisemitism has surged to levels not seen in the post-World War II era. He noted that last year over two-thirds of all religion-motivated hate crimes were directed at Jewish Canadians. Jews make up only 1% of the population.

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Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney delivers remarks at Holy Blossom Temple in Toronto on Monday, June 1 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is flanked by members of his security detail as he delivers remarks at Holy Blossom Temple in Toronto on Monday, June 1, 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks to community leaders and community members at Holy Blossom Temple in Toronto on Monday, June 1 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks to community leaders event at Holy Blossom Temple in Toronto on Monday, June 1 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

“The horror and shame are global. Our actions must be local. They start with clearly admitting that Canada’s civic compact is failing Jewish Canadians,” Carney said at Holy Blossom Temple in Toronto.

Carney said antisemites in Canada have fired bullets at Jewish schools and thrown firebombs at synagogues and attacked community centers. He said they have targeted Jewish-owned businesses and drove Jewish students from common spaces on university campuses.

Carney said antisemitism plagues Europe, Australia and the United States. But he said the crisis of antisemitism in Canada is “specific, severe and demands a targeted response.”

There has been a sharp rise in antisemitic incidents globally since the Israel-Hamas war began on Oct. 7, 2023.

Noah Shack, the CEO of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, said before the speech that the Canadian government must do more to strengthen community security and combat hate.

Carney said his government has introduced legislation over the last year to combat antisemitism and other forms of hatred. He said $75 million (US $54 million) in funding will provide faith-based institutions with things like security infrastructure and additional security personnel.

“It pains me that we had to commit $75 million to this, any dollar to this,” Carney said.

The prime minister announced the launch of a new Ministerial Advisory Council on Rights, Equality and Inclusion that will examine the nature, scale and drivers of antisemitism. It will measure its impacts and investments in education, prevention and community safety will follow, his office said.

“I want to be clear about what these potential measures are, and what they are not. They are not curtailments of freedom of expression. They are not constraints on legitimate criticism of any government on any subject anywhere,” Carney said.

“They are the basic standards we owe one another, in our shared public institutions, to ensure that no Canadian community is driven from those institutions by hatred.”

LIMA, Peru (AP) — Peruvian shamans gathered on Monday for a blessing ritual for the two candidates in the country’s presidential runoff next weekend, a decisive vote for the South American country that has seen a revolving door of presidents kicked out of office over corruption scandals.

The ritual is a tradition at the start of every year and before elections.

The shamans gathered by the sea on Herradura Beach in the Chorrillos district in Lima, Peru’s capital, holding up posters of the two candidates.

The two — Keiko Fujimori, the conservative daughter of disgraced former President Alberto Fujimori, and Roberto Sánchez, a nationalist congressman and former minister — are neck and neck in the polls and will face off on Sunday.

Fujimori garnered just over 17% of the votes while Sánchez got about 12% in a crowded field of candidates in the first round of voting in April. That round was mired in logistical problems that left thousands in Peru and abroad unable to cast ballots. It then took weeks for the country’s electoral body to finalize the two contenders for the runoff.

In the blessing ritual, the shamans used flower petals, fruit, coca leaves and fragrant pieces of palo santo — or “holy wood” in Spanish — as well as black tobacco, swords and dolls. They also lit colorful flares and banged drums.

“The ritual we perform is primarily intended to ensure that the best candidate is the one who represents our Peru,” said shaman Andrés de los Santos, who had traveled to Lima from the north of the country.

Although the shamans made no forecasts this time, they have previously predicted the future. At the end of 2025, they predicted Venezuela’s then-President Nicolás Maduro, now facing drug trafficking charges in the United States, would no longer be in office by the end of 2026.

The winner of the runoff will become Peru’s ninth president in just 10 years, replacing José María Balcázar, who was elected interim president in February. Balcázar replaced another interim leader, José Jerí, who was ousted over corruption allegations just four months into his term.

Peru’s next president will be sworn in on July 28 for a five-year term.

Follow AP’s Latin America coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america