A Hasidic Jewish man was attacked Friday night in Outremont, Montreal, by an assailant attempting to steal his shtreimel, a fur hat worn by Hasidic men, off his head. The man fended him off, while other members of the community rushed toward the attacker, causing him to flee. However, the attacker did manage to successfully snatch the shtreimels off the heads of two other men and make off with them.

Hasidic men wear shtreimels after marriage on Shabbat, holidays and special occasions. The tall fur hats are costly, running into the thousands of dollars for one headpiece.

The incident comes amid a spike in similar incidents in which visibly Jewish people are attacked, such as an incident last week in which a man wearing a kippah was assaulted in Toronto. In this incident, the Jewish man was approached by the assailant, who shouted slurs and threatened to kill him, following up his threats with throwing a traffic cone, bricks, and a tree branch at the victim that, causing scratches and lacerations. The man was arrested and identified as Abdulkadir Al-Jelani, 58, who claimed to be a Houthi from Yemen.

Jewish groups condemned the antisemitic attacks in Montreal and Toronto.

“This attack demonstrates how the anti-Zionist hate movement is being weaponized to justify intimidation and violent attacks against Canadians,” the Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs said in a statement.

“The problem needs to be named clearly: anti-Zionism is fueling radicalization, extremism, and anti-Jewish violence,” the group continued. “We continue to advocate for stronger action to identify, deter, and prosecute hate-motivated violence, and to ensure Canada’s Jewish community can live and work without fear.”

“Being Jewish is not a provocation,” Richard Robertson, from B’nai B’rith Canada, said in an interview with an Israel-based outlet.

“After every antisemitic incident, we hear the same response from our elected officials: ‘There is no place for hate in Canada,'” he continued. “Following the recent assault of a Jewish man in Toronto who was simply going about his workday, and the news that multiple visibly Jewish men were the targets of suspected hate crimes while simply walking on Shabbat, such rhetoric has become increasingly hollow.”

“Condemnation is important, but it cannot be the end of the conversation. Actions must be taken to assure Canada’s Jewish community that we can freely practice our faith in this country without fear. We demand a response that ensures that we can remain openly, visibly, and proudly Jewish,” Robertson concluded.

Meanwhile, leaders of the Montreal Jewish community have asked anyone with information to come forward.