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Edmonton Journal

Toronto police open hate-crime investigation after ArtHouseTO shares 'Death to the IDF!' image

The Toronto police have opened a hate-crime investigation into an art group after they shared a graphic on Instagram proclaiming: 'Death, Death to the IDF!' Article content The refrain, chanted by British rap duo Bob Vylan during a performance at the Glastonbury Festival in June, was reshared on the social media account of ArtHouseTO alongside a cartoon of a skeleton wearing a military helmet with the Israeli flag and a bullet hole dripping with blood. Article content Article content 'Hell yeah! From the river to the sea, Palestine must be free, will be, Inshallah, it will be free!' says the original post, which was published on June 29 by @ryanazak and then reshared by ArtHouseTO. Article content Toronto, CA 🇨🇦 ArtHouseTO is not just a controversial "art" space, it's a hub for dangerous, pro-Hamas propaganda. In addition to their disturbing and potentially criminal promotion of 'DEATH DEATH TO THE IDF', targeting Israeli soldiers in the only Jewish state with mandatory… — FactsMatter (@AllFactsNoHate) July 8, 2025 Article content On June 30, Facts Matter, an antisemitism watchdog group, reported the matter to the Toronto Police Service (TPS). On July 16, Facts Matter issued a press release announcing a hate-crime investigation had been opened. TPS independently verified the development this week, telling National Post in a brief written statement 'that the Hate Crime Unit is investigating' the matter. Article content 'We applaud the Toronto Police for acting swiftly and taking this matter seriously,' Canadian journalist and Facts Matter founder Warren Kinsella said in the press release. 'Hate has no place in Toronto, and no amount of artistic expression can disguise the promotion of violence and bigotry.' Article content ArtHouseTO co-creator Geoff Doner told the Post in an email on Tuesday that the artwork 'was another artist's (not our work) creative rendering of a chant heard at Glastonbury Festival, artwork we felt culturally relevant at the time. Article content Article content 'Because we take responses to our content seriously, we chose to take down the artwork as it was deemed offensive by some,' Doner said. Article content Article content Although the graphic has been deleted, ArtHouseTO has left several messages of support for the statement on their Instagram feed. On July 2, the communal art group reposted another message defending Bob Vylan's call. 'Chanting 'Death, Death to the IDF' is a morally required rallying cry against a genocidal army that continues to mass murder, starve, torture, rape, displace and maim Palestinians at an unprecedented rate,' reads the post from @jewssaynotogenocide.