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Arrests made in Jewish school's firebombing
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CTV.ca News Staff
Date: Sat. May. 15 2004 5:54 PM ET
Three suspects charged in the Montreal firebombing of a Jewish school made a video court appearance today. The two 18-year-old men and a woman in her 30's entered pleas of not guilty. They'll be back in court on Monday for a bail hearing.
The men face charges of arson and conspiracy. The woman is charged with being an accomplice after the fact.
Two other men had been in custody, but were released after questioning. They do not face charges.
"It makes you feel hopefully these people won't do it again, and others too will think twice," said Lori Essayag, whose children attend United Talmud Torah elementary school.
"I felt a sense of relief that finally there's a break in the investigation," said Sidney Benudiz, director-general of the United Talmud Torah.
They are not releasing any other information on the suspects because the investigation is ongoing. More arrests are possible, investigators say.
Representatives of the Jewish community are still worried. They want to learn more about the suspects and if they are linked to any other group.
The school's library was completely destroyed in the April 5th attack.
An anti-Semitic note taped to the school claimed the firebombing was in retaliation for Israel's killing of Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.
No one was injured in the fire, which began after the windows of the library were broken and accelerants were thrown inside. Books and computers were destroyed.
The school was closed for Passover, and when it reopened in mid-April it was under heavy security. Patrols were also stepped up around Montreal synagogues, schools and cemeteries.
The incident grabbed headlines around the world. It also grabbed the attention of Academy Award-winning actor Russell Crowe, who offered to help rebuild the library.
Crowe once played a violent Australian neo-nazi skinhead in the 1992 film Romper Stomper.
"They should be the ones who should pay to rebuild the library," said one student about the arrested suspects.
Since the attack on the library, gravestones at one of the oldest Jewish cemeteries in Montreal were vandalized. Earlier this month, police were called in to investigate after swastikas were drawn on several stones, and the word Hitler was scrawled on another at the Back River Cemetery.
Police do not believe the incident is linked to the firebombing at United Talmud Torah.
Meanwhile, Toronto is dealing with its own incidents of anti-Semitism, which have included the vandalism of two Jewish schools and the desecration of a Jewish cemetery.
Anti-Semitic vandalism in a Jewish cemetery has also been reported recently in Kitchener, Ont.
With a report from CTV's Genevieve Beauchemin
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I applaud the budget, even though Health Care and education may stay unscathed. Sadly this cannot last and I worry to later this year where cuts will become enviable. If anything, this provides the Wildrose Alliance plenty of ammo when an election is called.

