PJ The Belt - U.S. Embassy Under GUNFIRE in Canada — Who's Behind It？

00:00:00.000 We have breaking news out of Toronto, where Toronto police say someone has fired shots at the U.S. consulate in the downtown.

00:00:08.460 A big police presence here, David, surrounding the U.S. consulate, which is the building right behind me.

00:00:13.680 You can see the police tape and several police vehicles parked there, including a forensic identification unit.

00:00:19.400 Police were called to the U.S. consulate around 5.30 this morning.

00:00:23.280 But through our cameras, we can see, David, that there are bullet holes in the glass door, the front door of the building.

00:00:30.560 This is insane. Completely insane.

00:00:34.560 The American consulate was just attacked in Toronto today on Canadian soil.

00:00:40.220 For the first time ever, our closest ally is being attacked and threatened with violence right inside our borders.

00:00:46.960 Seriously, Canada, what the hell is going on in this country?

00:00:50.380 The RCMP, local police, and the FBI are all collaborating in trying to find who did this.

00:00:56.560 And they had a press conference earlier today where they offered more details.

00:01:00.920 Remember to like and subscribe so you never miss an update.

00:01:03.640 Let's get into it.

00:01:04.400 Canadian police reporting that the U.S. consulate in Toronto has been hit by gunfire.

00:01:09.160 That's all the detail we have. Let's watch live.

00:01:11.440 That's crazy.

00:01:12.040 I would also like to ask that any members of the public who may have some evidence, some dash cam footage, some video footage, anything that might be suspicious activity that could be connected to this, that they please contact the police to assist us with our investigation.

00:01:30.740 Again, I will repeat, the suspect vehicle was a white Honda CRV.

00:01:34.740 There were two males, two individuals that emerged and discharged the firearms.

00:01:38.600 This is early in the investigation, and of course, as it unfolds, and we're able to provide more information, we will surely do so.

00:01:44.940 Now I'd like to turn the microphone over to Chief Superintendent Chris Leather.

00:01:49.520 Thank you, Deputy. Good morning, everyone.

00:01:51.760 My name is Chris Leather. I'm the RCMP Chief Superintendent for Criminal Operations here in Ontario.

00:01:57.500 I'm going to make some formal remarks here, and then I look forward to questions that the media may have afterwards.

00:02:03.700 Our community has experienced a deeply concerning incident, and I want again by acknowledging the worry and uncertainty many people are feeling today.

00:02:11.700 Our thoughts are with everyone affected, as well as those who may be feeling unsettled by what has occurred.

00:02:17.700 At this stage, I can confirm that the RCMP is working closely with the Toronto Police Service and our international partners

00:02:23.700 who will assist us in a fulsome investigation into the shooting that took place overnight early this morning at the American Consulate behind us.

00:02:32.700 The RCMP's Integrated National Security Enforcement Team, INSET, GTA has permanent positions for members of the Toronto Police Service which further increase our capacity to conduct these investigations in real time with established and strong relationships, intelligence sharing and tactics.

00:02:50.700 At this time, the INSET team has been engaged, as this is a national security incident, and we are working with Toronto Police and others to understand the motivations of those involved.

00:03:03.660 The RCMP regularly works in close collaboration with police services of jurisdictions across the

00:03:09.900 country as well as our partners with Global Affairs Canada and the fulfillment of our mandate to

00:03:15.420 provide protection of designated persons including foreign diplomats and in relation to incidents

00:03:21.980 that occur at or in the vicinity of embassies or consulates. For the moment while the early stages

00:03:29.420 of the investigation are taking place we have increased security around embassies and consulate

00:03:34.060 buildings here in toronto and in the ottawa region there will be no tolerance for any form

00:03:42.140 of intimidation harassment or harmful targeting of any communities or individuals in canada

00:03:47.100 we want to assure that everyone's safety and security is at the forefront of everything that

00:03:50.620 we do the rcmp takes threats to security of individuals living in canada very seriously

00:03:55.660 and wants to reassure everyone that there is no indication

00:03:58.980 of an immediate threat to public safety at this time.

00:04:02.500 Thank you.

00:04:05.780 It was more than one guy.

00:04:07.460 It was two dudes.

00:04:09.740 Shot up the embassy.

00:04:12.060 We've already heard officials, including the Mayor of Toronto,

00:04:15.520 seemingly link this to the eye detentions in the Middle East.

00:04:18.520 What's your response to that?

00:04:19.580 Is that a fair argument?

00:04:21.740 It's too early for us to determine where the links lay or may not with those that are responsible for the shooting.

00:04:29.180 That is obviously part of the active investigation, and we're just simply not in a position to comment on that any further.

00:04:35.300 This is a federal investigation. Can you speak to how that changes the charges, the penalties? How does that elevate the series?

00:04:44.920 Section 83, which is a portion of the criminal code of Canada that deals with terrorism offences, if it's indeed determined to be that,

00:04:52.300 is the mandate under which we operate as a national police service pursuant to our

00:04:56.940 integrated national security enforcement teams but to be clear these are integrated units that

00:05:02.140 undertake these investigations so while it may be rcmp led it also has the ontario provincial

00:05:09.100 police toronto obviously will have a key role in this investigation and the other large police

00:05:13.180 services in the gta in particular will be working with us diligently on this investigation which is

00:05:17.980 It's now, of course, a high priority matter for us to take on.

00:05:21.400 FBL will probably be involved, too.

00:05:23.040 After you have recovered cell cases from both scenes, right?

00:05:28.500 We definitely will be looking at any possible connections.

00:05:38.120 Obviously, it is far too early in this investigation, but we do not look at them in isolation.

00:05:41.900 We look at them collectively.

00:05:43.080 And if and how there is something that is found in that to support that, then that will obviously color and direct how the investigation unfolds.

00:05:51.180 But it is not lost on us that the city has unfortunately experienced similar types of events, extremely serious and very concerning shootings at synagogues.

00:05:58.620 And this very much factors into how we will approach this matter as well.

00:06:01.800 Sir, you were two boys up to suggest the shooting event happened at 3 in the morning when you guys were older and 5 in the morning.

00:06:08.520 What time do you call the shooting?

00:06:10.740 We believe the shooting happened at 4.30.

00:06:12.760 around 4 29 in fact exactly or actually an officer was flagged down so there was a gap this is why

00:06:21.900 when we share the time of the event we would like people to be aware that that would be the time if

00:06:26.380 you were in this area if you have dash cam footage for instance it would be it would have been around

00:06:30.180 4 30 or so that we believe the incident to have taken place again i'll state that it's early so

00:06:34.680 investigators are still piecing things together but this is an early understanding of when we think

00:06:39.440 the timeline may have been it's hard to hear the reporters and their questions because their audio

00:06:44.220 is super low but at least you can hear the answers i don't have that information to share at the

00:06:50.120 moment it's unfortunately because the investigation is still very active and early i can't share that

00:07:01.460 i can tell you that there was a handgun that was discharged and that both individuals were

00:07:05.700 involved in that discharge and guns a and i bet you that neither of those guys is a registered

00:07:11.780 licensed gun owner they probably are not getting the emails that people like myself or lawful

00:07:18.080 gun owners are getting here in canada and they will not be turning in their firearms

00:07:23.100 i haven't had a look myself or spoken specifically with anyone about the damage but i can tell you

00:07:31.840 as most people would know, this is a heavily fortified building, very secure.

00:07:35.580 The glass and the walls are reinforced.

00:07:38.460 And so I don't believe that there was any penetration, if you will, of projectiles into the building.

00:07:42.880 In fact, it's quite possible that people in the building would not have even noticed.

00:07:45.820 That's how strong this building is behind me.

00:07:48.080 So again, we're still piecing some information together.

00:07:50.120 And as we're able to share more updates, we will do so.

00:07:54.500 I can tell you that there were multiple shots fired.

00:07:56.660 I don't have an exact number to share with you at the moment.

00:07:58.540 More than one.

00:08:01.840 What's the collaboration right now with U.S. Customers?

00:08:04.820 Where did that stand?

00:08:08.660 There's obviously formal communication going on with our U.S. counterparts,

00:08:12.440 the FBI, the consulate itself here.

00:08:15.220 We've had members at the consulate here this morning,

00:08:17.940 along with Toronto Police, meeting with staff here

00:08:19.780 and their senior executive to discuss the incident.

00:08:23.840 Rest assured, those conversations are also occurring in Ottawa

00:08:27.240 between officials there and their U.S. counterparts at the embassy.

00:08:30.100 he's asking about sleeper cells iranian sleeper cells that's an important question here

00:08:43.940 i don't have any information to provide at this time on any sleeper cells that may or may not

00:08:49.980 exist in canada suffice to say that our csis counterparts and and the insets across the

00:08:55.640 country are actively investigating uh matters such as this and uh we will continue to do so

00:09:03.320 i think it's important uh that the public realizes that we've had a number of meetings

00:09:06.920 and discussions already this morning with our federal counterparts and that does include

00:09:10.840 cc's both here in toronto region and at national headquarters and they are tracking this incident

00:09:15.880 very closely as well when you mentioned security at consulates do you just mean american conflicts

00:09:21.320 in canada or other countries consulates and embassies as well other consulates as well

00:09:26.680 including the israeli consulate will be seeing a change in the security posture here in toronto

00:09:31.400 as american and israeli consulates uh not that i'm prepared to speak to at this time

00:09:36.360 we'll be assessing that on an ongoing basis but for now the us consulate and the israeli consulate

00:09:42.440 will see a change so why did you choose those two consulates specifically well i think it's

00:09:46.520 fairly obvious based on the incidents that have occurred here in toronto and elsewhere

00:09:50.680 that these consulates deserve a heightened amount of vigilance and security at this time

00:09:55.560 in the hopes that we can bring the temperature down in the coming days and weeks not in my

00:10:05.160 memory i i can't recall us either investigating or becoming aware of a shooting here deputy um

00:10:11.240 i cannot recall the shooting i do recall many many years ago a firebomb incident we're going

00:10:17.160 back a ways i mean it won't be lost on anyone that the u.s consulate is the site of many protests

00:10:21.880 and demonstrations as well as because of geopolitical events the israeli consulate has

00:10:25.160 seen a lot of gatherings people assembling expressing themselves so uh so this is basically

00:10:31.960 the first time ever that the u.s embassy u.s consulate has ever been shot at in canadian

00:10:38.280 history the officer is saying that there might have been a fire bomb many years ago but it's

00:10:43.800 It's never, ever been shot at up until this point, which goes to show the level of craziness that is happening in Canada nowadays.

00:10:51.500 And a lot of people are having concerns about sleeper cells, right?

00:10:55.060 Iranian sleeper cells that are currently in Canada that conservative people have been sounding the alarm on for many years, but the liberals have ignored over and over again. 0.72

00:11:06.660 And of course, the only two embassies that will need increased security are the Israel embassy and the American embassy.

00:11:13.800 that this would be a scene where something like this would be a man where the manifestation of

00:11:19.620 frustration with geopolitical events would happen is not lost on us but that might in part explain

00:11:24.120 why this building is as secure and as fortified as it is i believe there were people inside at

00:11:33.480 the time i don't i can't confirm that however as i was mentioning earlier the building is so

00:11:37.420 fortified it's quite possible the people inside would not have noticed that there was that there

00:11:41.620 were shots, pardon me, that there were shots directed at the front of the building.

00:11:45.040 And are you able to confirm, I'm not sure how many shots were made from the casings?

00:11:49.160 So I'm afraid I'm not able to share that with you. I can say that it was multiple shots.

00:11:53.320 There were multiple casings. Last question, please. So what's entailed in determining if

00:11:58.480 this is terrorism related? You mentioned that was a possibility. Well, it's definitely a national 0.97

00:12:02.300 security incident because we had the U.S. consul, after all, struck by gunfire. Whether it's a

00:12:07.280 terrorist event or not, that'll be subject to the investigation that will be undertaken in the

00:12:11.480 coming days and weeks. And that'll be based on the evidence that's collected both here at the

00:12:15.100 scene and subsequently through the work with our partners. Can you just give us an update quickly

00:12:19.760 on traffic? How long is South Mountain? This guy's asking about traffic. I'm not able to tell you

00:12:23.820 exactly. I mean, I could follow up with you if you like. I'd speak to the people here that are

00:12:27.440 protecting the scene and rest assured that as soon as we're able to open up traffic, we will.

00:12:31.420 We realize that this is obviously an inconvenience for people, but the investigation is of a very

00:12:35.060 high priority and we are making sure that we are not leaving anything to chance and looking at every

00:12:38.780 little detail i'd like to thank everyone for attending today um just a reminder if you were

00:12:44.100 in the area early this morning around 4 29 if you're driving you have so an international

00:12:48.800 incident right now is being talked about and this to me stood out when they were asking that

00:12:54.200 leadership from police in toronto do you believe that there are cells in your country terror cells

00:13:00.120 he said there may or may not be existing in canada at this point but they are now tightening

00:13:05.500 security, stepping it up in both US and Israeli consulates in Toronto and the US embassy and

00:13:11.780 Israeli embassy in Ottawa, which of course is the capital city of Canada. A lot of people are

00:13:16.080 thinking that this might be an incident involving sleeper cells from Iran here in Canada. I wouldn't

00:13:21.160 be surprised if that's what's happening. Here's Doug Ford talking about exactly that.

00:13:24.880 Any indication of the police that these shootings and synagogues and this shooting at the consulate are related in any way?

00:13:31.660 Yeah, no, we haven't had any information on that.

00:13:36.920 But again, this is just me speaking.

00:13:40.120 I believe there's sleeper cells all over the world, as we know, or in the U.S., they're in Canada here.

00:13:45.860 Especially in Canada.

00:13:46.780 And we have to weed these people out and hold them accountable.

00:13:52.300 because again folks we all grew up here uh very peaceful loving uh communities all across the

00:14:00.020 province and and for these people to be doing this uh they need to be caught and they need to

00:14:05.560 be thrown in jail and deported after after you put them in jail deport them actually send them 0.87

00:14:11.420 back to where they came from here's dog ford premier of ontario governor of ontario for those

00:14:16.240 of you south of the border in that same press conference talking about what happened well good

00:14:21.920 morning i want to begin by condemning the shooting at the u.s consulate i had a meeting actually

00:14:30.100 planned uh with the consul general baxter hunt and uh he's a he's a very good man we had a we

00:14:37.940 had to cancel it but i can reassure uh the consul general and our u.s friends and allies that we're

00:14:46.080 going to throw everything at this. I had the opportunity to speak to the OPP commissioner

00:14:51.320 and he reassured me that he is working collaboratively with all three levels of

00:14:56.400 government, our municipal police, our provincial and our federal police. And I have all the

00:15:01.880 confidence in the world that they're going to catch these criminals and we're going to hold

00:15:08.340 them accountable and they're going to face the full extent of the law. It's absolutely

00:15:14.400 unacceptable what we've been seeing over the last week with the shootings at synagogues,

00:15:21.980 Jewish synagogues across the city in the 905. We're going to, again, throw every resource to 1.00

00:15:28.400 hold these people to account. You know, folks, this is Ontario, Canada. We've never seen this

00:15:33.680 in our entire lives. Well, that has changed, dog. No matter if it's the consulate or if it's

00:15:41.820 places worship and this goes for for every single religion what he fails to understand or pretends

00:15:50.320 not to understand is that today's canada is not the canada he grew up in and he is a part of the

00:15:56.100 problem people like himself with the crazy trump derangement syndrome he's not condemning an attack

00:16:02.140 on the u.s embassy but i would dare say he is partially responsible for what's happening today

00:16:07.260 because Canadian politicians have been pushing this anti-American agenda since Donald Trump took

00:16:14.220 office. Here's an example of exactly what I'm talking about. Doug Ford showing the world the

00:16:20.340 high levels of Trump derangement syndrome that he has. So it's very challenging right now. I just

00:16:28.060 sit back some days. I'm not the only one. Everyone in the world sits back and how can

00:16:33.720 how can one person one man create so much turmoil around the world not just here in canada around

00:16:41.840 the world it's pretty pretty staggering so i can't wait for the midterms politicians in canada have

00:16:49.280 been talking this way about the president of the united states for the better part of a year now

00:16:53.720 and then they wonder why donald trump can't stand a lot of them you're literally talking about how

00:16:58.980 you can't wait for the midterms so that Donald Trump loses the House and the Senate and all of

00:17:03.980 that. And again, then you wonder why President Trump can't stand you. And honestly, Doug Ford

00:17:09.320 isn't even the only politician in Canada showing crazy levels of hypocrisy and Trump derangement 0.98

00:17:14.980 syndrome. Here's Mark Carney a few months back talking about how our relationship with the United 0.94

00:17:20.020 States is now over. The old relationship we had with the United States based on deepening

00:17:26.200 integration of our economies and tight security and military cooperation is over we will need

00:17:34.440 to dramatically reduce our reliance on the united states we will need to pivot our trade relationships

00:17:40.440 elsewhere and we will need to do things previously thought impossible at speeds we haven't seen

00:17:46.680 in generations and that's why i chose to go to france and the united kingdom two long-standing

00:17:53.080 and reliable partners friends and allies of canada they're also 6 000 kilometers away and it's why

00:17:59.000 the time will come for a broad renegotiation of our security and trade relationship with the united

00:18:06.680 states and their economy is nowhere near as big as the us here's the thing an american embassy just

00:18:13.000 came under gunfire in canada that's not a normal story that's a serious incident so the real

00:18:20.360 questions are who was behind this was this a random act or something far more coordinated

00:18:26.840 and what happens next if authorities decide that this is a national security incident

00:18:32.120 one thing is certain this story is far from over so if you want updates as more information comes

00:18:38.200 out hit like subscribe to the channel and turn on notifications because we'll be following the story

00:18:44.520 very closely stay free

PJ The Belt - March 11, 2026

U.S. Embassy Under GUNFIRE in Canada — Who's Behind It？

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