‘With a heavy heart’: Canada’s envoy to combat antisemitism leaving early

Canada’s special official for fighting antisemitism says she is retiring her post, three months before the end of her term.

Deborah Lyons served as Canada’s Special Envoy on Preserving Holocaust Remembrance and Combatting Antisemitism since October 2023 and has not explained why she is leaving before her appointment expires this fall.

She says on social media that she is leaving “with a heavy heart” and with some deep disappointments while also pointing to achievements including work with institutions like universities and polices to improve understanding of anti-Jewish hate.

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Lyons says her office fought antisemitism “with a vigour and passion not seen in many other countries,” and yet she leaves with concern over how many Canadians feel that supporting one community means minimizing another community.

Lyons was the second person to hold the post of antisemitism envoy, following former attorney general Irwin Cotler who filled the role between 2020 and 2023.

Lyons took over just days after the start of the Israel-Hamas war that prompted large protests across Canada.