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2026 Belleville synagogue shooting

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2026 Belleville synagogue shooting
Sons of Jacob Synagogue in 2011
Map
Location44°10′11″N 77°22′16″W / 44.1695945°N 77.3712367°W / 44.1695945; -77.3712367
Belleville, Ontario, Canada
DateSeptember 20, 2026 (2026-09-20)
7:00 pm – 7:10 pm (Eastern Daylight Time)
TargetSons of Jacob synagogue
Attack type
WeaponsShotgun[1]
Deaths1 (the perpetrator)[2]
Injured1 (police officer)[1]
DefendersBelleville Police Service
MotiveAntisemitism[3]

On September 20, 2026, a shooting and a subsequent shootout occurred outside the Sons of Jacob synagogue in Belleville, Ontario, Canada. The perpetrator, 29-year-old Sean Ward, was fatally shot, while a police officer protecting the synagogue was seriously injured.

Authorities said that Ward was targeting members of Belleville's Jewish community. Ward had previously expressed antisemitic and anti-immigrant beliefs,[4] as well as conspiracy theories about COVID-19.[5]

Background

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Belleville is a small city approximately 180 kilometres (110 mi) east of Toronto and 80 kilometres (50 mi) west of Kingston, Ontario. The Sons of Jacob Synagogue is a small synagogue with about 35 families as members, lacking a full-time rabbi, and the only one in or around Belleville.[6][7]

Shooting

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According to investigators, as worshippers were arriving for Erev Yom Kippur services at around 7:00 to 7:10 pm, a lone gunman fired at a police officer who was providing security to the synagogue.[8] The officer, later identified as Constable Jeff Smith of the Belleville Police Service, was shot several times in the head and body.[3] Smith was wounded before exiting his vehicle,[9] but he confronted the attacker alone for around three minutes. At that time, a second officer responded to the scene and joined the gunfight.[3] Up to 30 rounds were fired during the incident.[8] Approximately 25 people were inside the synagogue during the shootout.[10] Congregants sheltered on the floor of the synagogue while bullets penetrated the synagogue's stained-glass windows and struck the walls of its sanctuary.[10] Nearby homes and vehicles were also struck.[9]

The perpetrator, Sean Ward, sustained life-threatening injuries.[1][3][8][11] He was armed with a shotgun,[1] carried "a significant amount of ammunition on his person," and "also had 'combustible' materials in his vehicle."[3] Ward died in hospital on September 21.[2] According to authorities, Ward had the means and motive to commit a "mass casualty" event, and the incident was "a hate-motivated crime" in which members of Belleville's Jewish community were targeted.[3] According to the Belleville Police Service, Ward shouted, "You are going to die for the Jews" during the attack.[3][9] Police also said the perpetrator had multiple weapons, a significant amount of ammunition, and gasoline available to him.[12]

Perpetrator

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The perpetrator was identified as 29-year-old Sean Ward, a resident of neighbouring Quinte West.[3] He had served in the Canadian Armed Forces from 2017 to 2022 and was discharged due to refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine. Ward had refused the vaccine on religious grounds and joined a lawsuit challenging the Canadian military's vaccine mandate.[9] He had reportedly expressed conspiracy theories about COVID-19, including "blaming Jews for COVID-19".[5]

According to one of his childhood friends, Ward had used the word "kike", an ethnic slur for Jews, in conversations. He also attempted to choose the username "kikekiller" while playing an online video game 18 days before the attack; the slur was censored, and he settled on "kitekiller" instead. Earlier in September, Ward told this friend that he was "depressed" and expressed anti-immigrant sentiment, blaming immigrants for his inability to find work.[4]

Reactions

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The Ontario premier, Doug Ford, condemned the shooting and expressed support for the wounded officer and other first responders,[13] as did the prime minister, Mark Carney, and the leader of the Official Opposition, Pierre Poilievre.[14]

See also

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References

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  1. 1 2 3 4 Jill Mahoney; Joe Friesen (September 22, 2026). "Suspect opened fire on officer as worshippers gathered at Belleville synagogue for Yom Kippur, SIU says". The Globe and Mail.
  2. 1 2 "Suspect in shooting outside Belleville synagogue has died, police watchdog says". The Canadian Press. September 22, 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Quennville, Guy (September 24, 2026). "Belleville synagogue shooter had means to carry out 'mass casualty' event: police chief". CBC News. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  4. 1 2 Eric Szeto; Christian Paas-Lang; Jordan Pearson; Megan McCleister (September 24, 2026). "Synagogue shooter's online username alluded to killing Jews weeks before attack, friend says". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved September 25, 2026.
  5. 1 2 Jeff Semple; Stewart Bell (September 22, 2026). "Belleville gunman spouted COVID-19 conspiracies while in army, say sources". Global News (Canada).
  6. ↑ Jenna Legge (September 23, 2026). "Questions swirl as members of Belleville, Ont., synagogue return after shooting".
  7. ↑ "Sons of Jacob Congregation". sonsofjacobsynagogue.ca. Retrieved September 25, 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 "What we know about the suspect in the Belleville, Ont., synagogue shooting". September 21, 2026.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Rob Gillies (September 24, 2026). "Police say gunman shouted antisemitic threat before opening fire outside Ontario synagogue". American Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved September 25, 2026.
  10. 1 2 Guy Quenneville; Dan Taekema (September 22, 2026). "'This is not going to stop us,' Belleville, Ont., synagogue president vows after shooting incident". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
  11. ↑ Lavoie, Joanna (September 21, 2026). "SIU investigating after 2 injured, including a police officer, in shooting near Belleville synagogue". CTVNews. Retrieved September 21, 2026.
  12. ↑ Gillies, Rob (September 24, 2026). "Police say gunman shouted antisemitic threat before opening fire outside Ontario synagogue". Associated Press.
  13. ↑ "Police officer, another person injured in shooting outside Ontario synagogue". Anadolu. September 21, 2026. Retrieved September 23, 2026.
  14. ↑ Derek Baldwin (September 22, 2026). "Carney, Poilievre wish injured Belleville constable well after shootout". Belleville Intelligencer.
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