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The Second Cup coffee chain has closed a store it says is linked to a Montreal franchisee who gave the Nazi salute to pro-Israel protesters and chanted, “The final solution is coming.”

In videos shared on social media, the woman was filmed wearing a keffiyeh, a traditional Palestinian headscarf, black sunglasses and a medical mask initially hiding her identity. Over the weekend, as news of the incident went viral and drew harsh condemnation from across the political spectrum, it was linked to a Second Cup coffee shop inside the city’s Jewish General Hospital.

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On Saturday evening, the company announced that it had severed ties with the store, closing it and ending its franchise agreement. “Last night, our Jewish General Hospital franchisee was filmed making hateful comments and gestures,” the company said in a public statement posted on Instagram and X.

“Not only are this franchisee’s actions a violation of our franchise agreement, they also violate the values ​​of inclusion and community that we uphold at Second Cup.”

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Mayor Jeremy Levi, whose community of Hampstead is a suburb of Montreal, applauded the news, emphasizing: “To all pro-terrorists, anti-Israelis and anti-Semites who spew hate: understand this clearly: your vile rhetoric and actions will not go unchecked. Your attempts to intimidate or sow division only strengthen our resolve and unite us in purpose.

“Your wrongful choices have consequences, and we will make sure they are felt,”» Levi added in a social media post Saturday evening following the announcement of the Second Cup.

Idit Shamir, the Israeli consul general in Toronto, thanked Second Cup for its quick action. “Imagine chanting “The final solution is coming” and giving a Nazi salute @Concordia — while running a cafe at the Jewish General Hospital, a place built by Holocaust survivors,” the Toronto-based manager said. wrote on X.

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The incident occurred as hundreds of anti-NATO and anti-Israel activists turned violent on the streets of Montreal, smashing store windows and setting cars on fire. Clashes with local law enforcement led to a handful of arrests as videos circulated online showing widespread chaos.

“What we saw last night on the streets of Montreal was terrible. Acts of anti-Semitism, intimidation and violence must be condemned wherever we see them,” said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. tweeted a day after the riots. “The RCMP is in communication with local police. There must be consequences, and the rioters must be held accountable. »

“Total anarchy in Montreal as pro-Hamas terrorist gangs, emboldened by the Trudeau Liberals, destroy the Prime Minister’s own hometown,” said Conservative deputy leader Melissa Lantsman. wrote on social networks Friday evening.

“Riots are rampaging violently and not a single word from our government. They only act when you disagree with them. Bring back law and order, safe streets and communities to the Canada we once knew and loved. I hope the concert went well,” added Lantsman, speaking of Trudeau’s attendance at a Taylor Swift concert in Toronto the same evening.

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Leader of the Conservative Party Pierre Poilievre struck a similar note.

“You act surprised. We reap what you sow,” the Opposition Leader publicly responded to Trudeau following the Prime Minister’s earlier statement. “And while you were dancing, Montreal was burning. We won’t let you divide us anymore. Call an election now. We will fire you and reclaim our citizenship, our values, our lives, our freedom and, most importantly, our country.

Images of masked protesters with red smoke bombs marching down the street and smashing windows in jubilation even made waves south of the border, prompting the American investment mogul to Bill Ackman to tweet: “@JustinTrudeau must go. »

The violent scenes prompted the Israeli consulate to “urge the Canadian government to act decisively to stop this dangerous and anti-Semitic incitement before tragedy strikes,” calling popular protest chants including “globalize the ‘Intifada’, “not just rhetoric” but “a call to violence.” against Jews, Israelis and anyone who defends Western values.

National Post

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