For the first time ever, the annual flag-raising ceremony in Ottawa to mark the establishment of Israel has been cancelled for safety and security reasons.

In a social media post, Mayor Mark Sutcliffe says he’s ”very disappointed,” blaming escalating threats and hostility for the cancellation next week of the ceremony, though the flag will still be raised.

 

 

”While the Israeli flag will still fly at city hall on May 14, as it has every year since 2007, and as the city does for more than 190 countries with whom Canada has diplomatic relations, it will be another blow to the Jewish community that the customary ceremony will not take place,” Sutcliffe’s post reads.

A group shared on social media that it had planned to protest the event.

Canada’s envoy for combating antisemitism condemns the cancellation, saying Jewish Canadians should not be prevented from living public lives.