Gunmen opened fire on the United States Consulate in downtown Toronto early Tuesday morning, shattering the building’s front glass doors and prompting a joint law enforcement response from Canadian federal and local police.
Toronto Police received a call reporting gunfire at approximately 5:29 a.m. The consulate sits at the intersection of University Avenue and Queen Street West. Officers arrived to find multiple bullet holes piercing the building’s front entrance. No injuries were reported.
“There are bullet holes in the glass door, the front door of the building,” a CBC reporter confirmed from the scene.
Toronto Police and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police are jointly processing the scene. A heavy police presence has also been stationed at the Israeli consulate as a precautionary measure. Southbound University Avenue remained closed Tuesday morning as forensic teams worked the area.
Officials are asking anyone with dashcam footage or information to contact investigators.
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow addressed reporters Tuesday morning. “This morning the U.S. consulate was shot at. This comes after shootings at synagogues over the past two weekends. This cannot stand,” Chow said. She added that “anti-Semitic incidents spike when international tensions rise.”
Ontario Premier Doug Ford called the consulate attack “an absolutely unacceptable act of violence and intimidation aimed at our American friends and neighbors.” Ford urged law enforcement at all levels to “bring every resource to bear” to prosecute those responsible to the fullest extent of the law.
Former Ontario Provincial Police Commissioner Chris Lewis told reporters the motive appeared driven by “anti-U.S. sentiments” tied to volatility in the Middle East. Lewis noted the consulate, while lacking the permanent armed perimeter of the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa, is under 24-hour surveillance.
“They are making an obvious statement here,” Lewis said.
No suspects have been identified or arrested as of Tuesday morning. Investigators have not released information about the type of firearm used or how many shots were fired.
