'The sorrow doesn't go away:' Commemoration for victims of Quebec City mosque shooting
'The sorrow doesn't go away:' Commemoration for victims of Quebec City mosque shooting
Montrealers gathered Friday to commemorate victims of the Quebec City mosque shooting nearly six years ago.
Afternoon prayers at the Verdun Islamic Centre also included a moment of reflection for those killed in the 2017 attack.
"Believe me, the sorrow doesn't go away. Yes, we life our live and this is nature. But the sorry is in our hearts everyday," said Samer Mazjoub, president of the Canadian Muslim Forum.
On Jan. 29, 2017, six men were killed and five critically injured shortly after evening prayer at the Quebec City Islamic Cultural Centre.
The victims were professor Khaled Belkacemi, 60; pharmacy worker Aboubaker Thabti, 44; grocery store owner Azzeddine Soufiane, 57, the owner of a local grocery store; accounting technician Mamadou Tanou Barry, 42; computer analyst Abdelkrim Hassane, 41; and IT worker Ibrahima Barry, 39.
The gunman, who was 27 at the time, pleaded guilty to the murders in 2018.
A judge said the shooter had a "visceral hatred for immigrants who are Muslims."
Afternoon prayers at the Verdun Islamic Centre on Jan. 27, 2023 included a moment of silence for those killed in the 2017 Quebec City mosque shooting. (CTV News/Kelly Greig)
For Ahmed Chihane, president of the Verdun Islamic Centre, the tragedy is a painful reminder of the reality many Quebec Muslims face.
"[It's] the problem of Islamaphobia here in Quebec, which is rising every day," he said.
According to Montreal police, the number of hate incidents based on religion rose from 32 to 40 between 2020 and 2021.
And in Quebec City, the number of hate crimes rose for the fourth year in a row.
"This might happen to any one of us," Chihane concluded.
For this reason, Friday's event was more than a commemoration -- it was a call to action.
"Bringing everyone here in front of the mosque to talk about the actions we can do to counter Islamophobia is really important," said Stephen Brown, CEO of the National Council of Canadian Muslims.
Those actions include addressing racial profiling by authorities like police, and creating better tools to help people report intimidation or hate crimes.
According to Brown, many are also hoping for changes to Quebec's secularism law, Bill 21.
A speaker wears an anti-Bill 21 pin at a Montreal commemoration on Jan. 27, 2023 for victims of the 2017 Quebec City mosque shooting. (CTV News/Kelly Greig)
"A major source of public tension right now is Bill 21," said Brown. "In a situation where it allows you to take people's rights without justifications means we don't have rights, we have permissions."
Bill 21 prohibits government employees from wearing religious symbols, including head and face coverings.
Many religious groups and civil rights advocates have argued the bill disproportionately affects racialized and immigrant groups, particularly Muslim women.
But the Quebec government has maintained that the law is "reasonable."
However, many members of the Muslim community feel differently.
"We should not beg for tolerance and acceptance," said Mazjoub of the Canadian Muslim Forum. "We are citizens. To make a whole community feel like they need to beg for tolerance and acceptance is extremely bad."
The parents of young Ontario hockey player Ben Teague have been searching for answers since he died while at a team retreat in 2019. The mystery about what happened and the code of silence in hockey culture is explored in CTV W5's 'What Happened to Ben,' on CTVNews.ca and W5's official YouTube channel.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's calls for protests ahead of his anticipated indictment in New York have generated mostly muted reactions from supporters, with even some of his most ardent loyalists dismissing the idea as a waste of time or a law enforcement trap.
In an effort to keep the foreign interference story at the forefront, and to do an apparent endrun around the Liberal filibuster blocking one study from going ahead, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is forcing MPs to debate and then vote on a motion instructing an opposition-dominated House committee to strike its own review.
Officials are still looking for victims after a fire ripped through a building in Old Montreal last week, killing at least one person. At a press conference Monday morning, spokespersons for the Montreal police and Montreal fire department said six people are still missing. They come from various locations in Quebec, Ontario and the U.S.
An Ontario woman has launched a lawsuit seeking $500,000 from Tim Hortons after she suffered major burns from an alleged ‘superheated’ tea. The company has denied all allegations and said she was ‘the author of her own misfortune.'
Chinese leader Xi Jinping is due to meet with Vladimir Putin in a political boost for the isolated Russian president after the International Criminal Court charged him with war crimes in Ukraine.
Even at one of the tallest natural peaks on Earth, humans have left their mark in a trail of bacteria as researchers have found germs from coughing and sneezing that have been potentially preserved for centuries on Mount Everest.
March 20 marks the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere, and, after a long, grey winter, Torontonians can soon look forward to warmer temperatures and sunnier days.
An Ontario woman has launched a lawsuit seeking $500,000 from Tim Hortons after she suffered major burns from an alleged ‘superheated’ tea. The company has denied all allegations and said she was ‘the author of her own misfortune.'
The University of Prince Edward Island Faculty Association says its staff has gone on strike after what it says are failed attempts to enter additional negotiations with the university's administration.
The student union president at Cape Breton University said food insecurity has become a concern for many students and the on-campus food bank cannot keep up with demand.
The University of Prince Edward Island coach is defending the team’s actions, after the University of Alberta team skated off the ice without handshakes at the U Sports Men’s Hockey National Championship in Charlottetown.
Lane restrictions are now in place on Wellington Street as construction gets underway on Phase 1 of the Wellington Gateway and Municipal Infrastructure Improvements project.
The first day of spring in the London region will be a beautiful one. The daytime high is forecast to be 6 C, slightly warmer than the average high for this time of year.
An Ontario woman has launched a lawsuit seeking $500,000 from Tim Hortons after she suffered major burns from an alleged ‘superheated’ tea. The company has denied all allegations and said she was ‘the author of her own misfortune.'
The Town of Strathmore and Siksika Nation hosted the first Lead By Example Powwow this weekend in honour of a young Indigenous man who was shot to death four years ago.
Autopsies confirmed gunshot wounds as the cause of death for two constables responding to a domestic dispute Thursday, the Edmonton Police Service says.
A community is in mourning after a 10-year-old girl was killed earlier this week when flames tore through her family’s camping trailer southeast of Brantford.
St. Patrick's day street parties in Waterloo, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau making an announcement in Guelph, and a woman charged with defrauding doulas round out the most-read stories of the week.
Vancouver firefighters were called to the Downtown Eastside Sunday evening after a fire destroyed multiple tents in an encampment and spread to a building near Main and East Hastings streets.
An international student was swarmed and beaten by a group of people who ripped off his turban and dragged him across the sidewalk by his hair in Kelowna, B.C., Friday evening, according to a local politician.
Autopsies confirmed gunshot wounds as the cause of death for two constables responding to a domestic dispute Thursday, the Edmonton Police Service says.
The investigation into a house explosion in Windsor will continue Monday. The process wrapped up for the day around 7 p.m. at the scene on Aspen Lane in east Windsor.
The first day of spring in Windsor-Essex will be a beautiful one. The daytime high is forecast to be 9 C, nearly 2 C warmer than the average high for this time of year.
Travel nurses go from place to place, all over the world, filling in wherever help is needed. To assist with current shortages, some are in Saskatchewan.
Pile O Bones hosted their 18th annual tattoo convention at the Turvey Centre on the weekend where artists from around the country were able to highlight their talent.
An Ontario woman has launched a lawsuit seeking $500,000 from Tim Hortons after she suffered major burns from an alleged ‘superheated’ tea. The company has denied all allegations and said she was ‘the author of her own misfortune.'
The Rideau McDonald's Farewell March brought people from across the city, some dressed in costumes, who wanted to say goodbye to a part of what they say makes Ottawa Ottawa.
If you are yearning to walk the trails around Mud Lake in the Britannia Conservation Area, be aware there are wild turkeys looking for mates. A gang of three have been chasing and pecking at visitors to the nature trail for weeks.
Afternoon prayers at the Verdun Islamic Centre on Jan. 27, 2023 included a moment of silence for those killed in the 2017 Quebec City mosque shooting. (CTV News/Kelly Greig) 
A speaker wears an anti-Bill 21 pin at a Montreal commemoration on Jan. 27, 2023 for victims of the 2017 Quebec City mosque shooting. (CTV News/Kelly Greig) 
