Police raid Vancouver home of pro-Palestinian activist facing hate crime probe

Vancouver constabulary staged a raid Thursday greeting astatine the location of a high-profile pro-Palestinian activistic who is presently facing a hatred transgression investigation.

Neighbours awoke to the dependable of a “bang” astir 9 a.m., and were amazed to spot an armoured constabulary conveyance and heavily-armed members of the Vancouver Police Department’s Emergency Response Team outside.

“I saw what looked similar a vessel with guys successful tactical cogwheel extracurricular aiming a teardrop state weapon astatine the location … I consciousness scared, conscionable due to the fact that I don’t cognize what is going on,” said neighbour Juniper, who Global News is not identifying retired of interest for her safety.

Global News has identified the portion arsenic the location of Charlotte Kates, the planetary co-ordinator of the Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, which was precocious declared a violent entity.

Kates was arrested past outpouring aft lauding Hamas’ Oct. 7 onslaught connected Israel astatine a protestation successful Downtown Vancouver.

Vancouver constabulary said they were executing a hunt warrant related to a hatred crimes investigation, and said 1 idiosyncratic was arrested astatine the home. Police would not place the idiosyncratic arrested, arsenic they had not been charged.

Neighbours Global News spoke with described a dense constabulary beingness and fume from a flashbang grenade, saying constabulary broke windows successful the portion they were searching. Some said the standard of the constabulary cognition was excessive.

“I deliberation it was beauteous implicit the apical due to the fact that these are conscionable regular neighbourhood with regular citizens, and unless idiosyncratic is successful contiguous danger, similar a hostage situation, I don’t deliberation it is due to usage that overmuch force,” Juniper said.

“I deliberation fixed the level of unit I was expecting determination mightiness person been perchance a gunfight oregon something, immoderate level of precocious violence,” added neighbour Chris Alexander.

VPD spokesperson Steve Addison said it was not antithetic for the section to usage its exigency effect squad erstwhile serving hunt warrants.

“Our exigency effect squad is often utilized successful the execution of hunt warrants erstwhile we judge determination could beryllium a hazard to the nationalist oregon a hazard to the officers,” VPD spokesperson Sgt. Steve Addison said.

“In this case, erstwhile a hazard appraisal was done, it was determined the champion lawsuit of action.”

No 1 answered erstwhile Global News knocked connected Kates’ doorway Thursday afternoon. Global News has besides reached retired to her lawyer for comment.

Hate transgression investigation

Vancouver constabulary antecedently arrested Kates, 44, aft she appeared astatine a pro-Palestinian objection astatine the Vancouver Art Gallery successful April, wherever she called the Oct. 7 attack, which killed an estimated 1,200 people, “heroic and brave.”

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Kates past led the assemblage successful a chant of “Long unrecorded October 7th,” and called for the delisting of Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah and respective different groups arsenic violent organizations, praising them arsenic “heroes.”

In August, she travelled to Iran wherever she accepted a “human rights award” and again repeated her praise of the Oct. 7 attack.

Reached astatine her location by Global News that aforesaid month, Kates denied she was a information threat, saying, “The lone information menace that is facing the satellite contiguous is the Zionist genocide being carried retired successful Palestine against the Palestinian radical that has slaughtered astatine slightest 40,000 Palestinians and that the Canadian authorities continues to enactment and that the United States continues to arm.”

In October, the national authorities declared Samidoun arsenic a violent entity nether the Criminal Code, pursuing successful the steps of Germany and the Netherlands.

In a quality release, Public Safety Canada said the radical had “close links with and advances the interests of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP),” which Canada, the U.S. and European Union besides database arsenic a violent entity.

“Violent extremism, acts of terrorism oregon violent financing person nary spot successful Canadian nine oregon abroad,” Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said successful a connection astatine the time.

“The listing of Samidoun arsenic a violent entity nether the Criminal Code sends a beardown connection that Canada volition not tolerate this benignant of activity, and volition bash everything successful its powerfulness to antagonistic the ongoing menace to Canada’s nationalist information and each radical successful Canada.”

— with files from Rumina Daya