Ontario Premier Doug Ford expressed disbelief at the decision made by an Ontario judge to deny his government’s request for an injunction to stop today’s Al-Quds rally in downtown Toronto this afternoon.
“I am extremely disappointed that the court has refused to put a stop to Al-Quds Day, which has long been a venue for antisemitism, hatred, intimidation and the glorification of terrorism,” he wrote in an X Post. “We need to be clear that no one in Canada has the right to incite violence or free licence to intimidate and hate.”
Ford noted that the judge also said that the Toronto Police Service does “not need an injunction to preserve the peace. That’s unbelievable! If that’s the case, I fully expect that the police will immediately intervene at the first sign of hate, violence or glorification of terrorist organizations.”
I am extremely disappointed that the court has refused to put a stop to Al-Quds Day, which has long been a venue for antisemitism, hatred, intimidation and the glorification of terrorism.
While the judge cited Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms, when we talk about rights we…— Doug Ford (@fordnation) March 14, 2026
Tensions between protesters and counter-protesters erupted early, with the TPS moving in to make an arrest for a demonstration-related offence shortly before 3 p.m.
Toronto Police are starting to arrest people at the American Consulate downtown Toronto pic.twitter.com/FzKS51OlbW
— Israel Now (@neveragainlive1) March 14, 2026
More information about the arrest was promised in Toronto police X post.
DEMONSTRATION: UPDATE
ARREST:
University Avenue & Armoury Street
2:55 p.m.
– One arrest has been made
– More information to be provided by way of media release at a later time— Toronto Police Operations (@TPSOperations) March 14, 2026
Earlier in the afternoon Ontario judge Robert Centa denied the provincial government’s attempt to obtain a court injunction to shut it down.
The dismissal of the request arrived less than an hour before the Al-Quds Day rally in downtown Toronto was scheduled to begin. Similar rallies are planned for other Canadian cities.
Ontario’s lawyers were grilled during the Saturday afternoon hearing as they argued the protest was a forum for antisemitism and should be shut down given heightened tensions that have arisen around the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran and recent shoot-ups of three Toronto synagogues and the U.S. Consulate.
On Friday Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced that he had instructed the provincial Attorney General to seek a court injunction against the Al-Quds Day rally.
“This afternoon, I’ve instructed my Attorney General to pursue an injunction against the Al-Quds Day demonstration planned for Toronto,” he wrote in an X post on Friday. “Hate, violence and intimidation have no place on the streets of Canada and our government will fight it however we can.”
Organizers have promoted the event as a call against against war on Iran and Lebanon and contended the injunction was an attempt to silence anti-Israel advocacy and criticism of Israel. A lawyer for the organizers noted during the injunction hearing that they have coordinated the event with police, adding there is no evidence of charges against demonstrators during past Al-Quds rallies.
Police said they are going to expand their presence at the rally, citing heightened tensions in Toronto. And an extensive police contingent was in evidence in front of the American Consulate this afternoon.
Heavy police presence as people begin to gather outside the US consulate in Toronto for the Al-Quds Day event and counter-protest. pic.twitter.com/zbOsIXRrGH
— Beth Baisch 📸 (@BethBaisch) March 14, 2026
Al-Quds Day was established by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini following the Iranian Revolution in 1979. Its stated goal is to express solidarity with Palestinians and opposition to Israel’s control of Jerusalem but the global events regularly feature calls for the destruction of Israel and the deaths of Israelis while expressing support for the Iranian regime and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a terrorist group banned in Canada.
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