Jewish private school in Toronto evacuated after threat: police

A Jewish private school in Toronto has been evacuated after police reported a threat to the institution.

Toronto police said Tanenbaum Community Hebrew Academy of Toronto had received a threat on Friday morning.

Police said they were on scene investigating and assisting with an evacuation of the students.

The threat came around 11:30 a.m. and evacuations began around 11:45 a.m., police said. Around an hour after the threat was received, police had not found anything suspicious.

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The UJA Federation of Greater Toronto, a prominent Jewish group, said the school was evacuated after a bomb threat.

“This incident is an example of the importance of Jewish institutions maintaining security protocols and a high level of readiness,” the group said in a social media post.

Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said the evacuation over an “antisemitic bomb threat” involved 1,300 students.

“Antisemitism is unacceptable,” the mayor said in a statement.

“Children, teenagers, teachers and education workers should be able to attend school without fear of violence. Parents and guardians deserve to know that their kids and loved ones are safe. ”

Chow said she had spoken to the school’s leadership to offer them her support.

The school is located at 200 Wilmington Avenue in the area of Dufferin Street and Finch Avenue West and road closures were in place around its borders as the investigation takes place.

Police were called to the same school in October after a group allegedly made threatening remarks to students.