Group calls for ban on display, distribution of terror symbols, literature
Current laws don't specifically criminalize displaying or distributing materials promoting outlaws terror groups
Author of the article:Bryan Passifiume
Published Sep 08, 2025 • 1 minute read
OTTAWA — With anti-Israel activism within Canada showing no sign of diminishing, one group is urging the government to close loopholes in Canada’s terror laws.
In a new initiative, Canadian Women Against Antisemitism (CWAA) want sections of the Criminal Code of Canada dealing with terrorism amended to criminalize the distribution, public display and circulation of symbols and propaganda connected with listed terrorist groups.
“I can run up and down the streets of Toronto waving a Hamas flag. I can hand out a Hamas ‘how-to’ playbook on how to hold a rally, how to blow up the synagogue, how to de-legitimize the Jewish community — I can hand out all of that stuff, and there’s nothing illegal about it,” said CWAA’s Talia Leighton.
“We’ve all seen examples of this, especially at the U of T encampment.”
While the Criminal Code does contain the ill-defined offences of “willful promotion of hatred” and “willful promotion of antisemitism,” there’s nothing specifically outlawing the display or distribution of terrorist propaganda or symbols.
Indeed, while flags belonging to groups including Hamas, Hezbollah, Samidoun and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine are common sights at anti-Israel rallies and encampments across Canada, there’s little police and the Crown can do to address it.
The CWAA is proposing draft legislation that would fill this gap, and bring Canada into line with nations such as the U.K., Germany and France, who already have such laws on the books.
Earlier this year, a member of the Irish rap group Kneecap was charged by Metropolitan Police for waving a Hezbollah flag at a 2024 concert in London.
bpassifiume@postmedia.com
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Federal laws of Canada
laws-lois.justice.gc.ca
Current laws don't specifically criminalize displaying or distributing materials promoting outlaws terror groups
torontosun.com