

Bryann Aguilar, CP24.com





Hundreds of demonstrators flocked the U.S. Consulate downtown on Saturday to demand the American government to stop its attack on Iran following the airstrike that killed a top Iranian general.

Protesters carried slogans and chanted anti-war slogans, calling for peace and urging the Canadian government to condemn the actions by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Gen. Qassem Soleimani was killed on Friday in an airstrike near Baghdad's international airport. As head of Iran's elite Quds, Soleimani has been blamed for attacks on American troops and allies going back decades.

Iran has vowed retribution in the wake of the attack, concerning many about the possibility of an all-out war.

"War is never the answer," said 'No War with Iran' organizer Saman Tabasinejad.

She said the majority of Iranian Canadians do not want the current situation to escalate.

"To me, it's not about Soleimani. It's not about individual people. It's about the fact that we are legitimizing acts of war, aggression…of more human life in the Middle East being jeopardized," said Tabasinejad.

She said the rally was organized to show her grandmother in Iran, who is worried that the American government wants to hurt Iranians, that she is in solidarity with them.

"I don't want my family's home to be destroyed," she said. "People here don't want their homes to be destroyed.

Protesters were also urging leaders to help deescalate tensions in the region.

A few hours after the demonstration, a candlelight vigil was held for Soleimani outside a downtown courthouse on Saturday night.

Toronto police were at the vigil as a precaution to keep the peace.

Mourners lit candles at a makeshift memorial by the courthouse, setting a starkly different tone from a celebration of Soleimani's death held in Toronto on Friday.

Attendees said they hoped Soleimani's death would mark a rebirth for Iran.

The Canadian government has released a travel advisory for countries in the Middle East.

In a tweet, the government said it had “updated security advice for multiple destinations in the region due to an increased threat of attacks.”

“The security situation could worsen with little warning. Exercise caution.”

#MiddleEast: Updated security advice for multiple destinations in the region due to an increased threat of attacks. The security situation could worsen with little warning. Exercise caution. https://t.co/aeNzzcrEJr — Travel.gc.ca (@TravelGoC) January 4, 2020

Similar protests happened across dozens of cities in America. Many condemned the Trump administration's decision to send thousands of additional soldiers to the Middle East.

A few hundred demonstrators gathered in Times Square on Saturday, chanting, "No justice, no peace, U.S. out of the Middle East!"

"The United States is trying to use Iraq as a proxy war," said Russell Branca, 72, of Queens. "If the United States and Iran are going to fights, it's not going to be in the United States, and it's not going to be in Iran, it'll be in other places. And it's just crazy because none of this is necessary."

-with files from The Canadian Press and The Associated Press