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A Toronto restaurant owner is speaking out after her downtown business was vandalized hours after the anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel, and police say their hate crime unit is aware.

Banu, an Iranian restaurant on Queen Street W. near Bathurst Street, had its front window smashed and its interior damaged on Tuesday.

The restaurant, which has been in the area for more than 19 years, is co-owned by Samira Mohyeddin, a former CBC Radio journalist. On its website, the restaurant says it serves the "very best of Iranian culture, cocktails, and cuisine."


Toronto police say they are investigating, but have not deemed the incident a hate crime.

Asked why, police spokesperson Stephanie Sayer told CBC News "there would need to be evidence that the crime was motivated in whole or in part by the offender's (real or perceived) bias, prejudice or hate against an identifiable group. At this time, there is no evidence of that."

Security footage from Oct. 8th at around 3:30 a.m. shows a person approaching the restaurant, then coming back with a hammer, hitting the window five times before entering. The person, wearing a hoodie, a mask and gloves, was inside the business for about seven minutes. Mohyeddin said there are no fingerprints.

"I was very angry, extremely angry and really sad at the same time. Those were the two emotions that were really permeating when I first saw the footage, which was very jarring, and then seeing the actual front of the restaurant with the broken glass," Mohyeddin said.

In addition to the front window being shattered, shelves, tables and chairs were knocked over, vases were broken.

 

 

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