Video of an incident at the University of 海角社区官网that led to a pro-Palestinian protester being charged with assault casts new light on the encounter and, according to the man’s lawyer, raises questions about the charges laid against him.
Hesham Aly, 36, was charged after another man tried last month to force his way past metal fencing erected around a protest camp on the grounds of the University of Toronto.
The incident took place May 9, about a week after the encampment protest had begun, and a report was filed by the university’s campus security agents.聽Aly was charged on May 24,聽and was publicly identified in a 海角社区官网police news release last Wednesday.
The university’s security report appears to attribute to Aly some actions taken by another individual involved in the encounter. That other individual is seen in the video brandishing a glass liquor bottle and shouting obscenities at the alleged victim.
The 海角社区官网police did not respond to the Star’s questions about the evidence they relied in charging Aly聽or whether other suspects were being sought in the matter.聽It was unclear to what degree, if any, the security report precipitated the charges.
The encounter took place on a Thursday afternoon. A father and his grown son arrived on bicycles at the University of Toronto鈥檚 main campus, saying they intended to play football on the grass field聽鈥 the same grass field that had been occupied by student protesters days earlier 鈥 according to a campus security report. The report noted the father and son聽were not allowed past the blue metal fencing.
The video of the incident was taken by a protester and shared with the Star by the man’s lawyer. It begins after the father and son’s arrival and shows the father holding his telephone in front of him, recording the scene, and asking: 鈥淵ou鈥檙e just going to stand there and not allow access to a public area?鈥
The fencing is guarded by Aly, who wears a white-and-black sweater and a black medical mask. He has his hands in the pockets of his black sweatpants and looks straight ahead.
The father then holds his telephone in front of the faces of Aly and other protesters, saying: 鈥淎ll your faces are going on artificial intelligence. 鈥 Do you have anything else to say before you take this to another level?鈥
Video shows a man attempting to force open the gate of the encampment, which is being guarded by Hesham Aly.
Screen captureThe father then hands his bicycle to his son and says to Aly: 鈥淐an you get out of the way, please?鈥 before reaching behind him and unsuccessfully attempting to pull open the fencing.
Video shows Hesham Aly, wearing a black medical mask, pushing a man backwards.
Screen captureAly is pushed off balance by the father’s attempt to open the gates. In response, Aly is seen pushing the father backwards two times.
Video shows two other individuals rushing forward in reaction to a scuffle between Hesham Aly, wearing a black medical mask, and a man seeking access to the campus field. One is a woman, who places herself between the two men. The other is a young man carrying an empty glass liquor bottle.聽
Screen captureTwo other people rush forward in reaction to the scuffle. One is a woman who puts herself between Aly and the father. The other is a young man who wears a black hooded sweater and a black face mask.
In his right hand, that young man carries an empty glass liquor bottle held upside down and in the air.
Video shows Hesham Aly, wearing a black medical mask grabbing the man with the bottle and pushing him away from the alleged victim.
Screen captureWhen Aly notices the young man is holding a liquor bottle, his attention turns away from the father and he pushes the man with the bottle away, in the opposite direction.
The father appears to be still filming the scene with his telephone.
Video shows an unidentified individual gesturing at the alleged victim while shouting angrily at the man.
Screen captureWhile walking away, the man with the bottle shouts at the father angrily.
鈥淲ho the f—- asked you to be here, you Zionist c—-sucker? Get out of here! You should be ashamed of yourself!鈥
Video of an encounter at the University of 海角社区官网pro-Palestinian encampment that resulted in an assault charge shows a father and son seeking access to the campus field which is occupied by protesters. Hesham Aly, wearing a black medical mask, is guarding the entry to the encampment.
Screen captureAly walks toward the man with the bottle, then returns to his earlier position in front of the fence.
A few seconds later, the man with the bottle walks away.
Video shows Hesham Aly, wearing a black medical mask, taking photographs of a man who tried to force his way through the encampment fence to get access to a campus football field being occupied by protesters.
Screen captureSome of the other pro-Palestinian protesters make general non-threatening comments to the father. The medical mask worn by Aly makes it difficult to tell what, if anything, he says.
Aly takes out his own mobile telephone and takes pictures of the father and son before they leave the scene.
There follows a few minutes more of debate and discussion during which the father says all he wants to do is play football on a grass field rather than a different university field with artificial turf.
One bystander comments: “There’s a genocide happening in the Middle East right now, and you think we have time for football in this field?”
The father then mounts his bicycle and rides a short distance away while the son lingers, speaking with a group of onlookers.
The U of T campus police report, which is based on a complaint from the alleged assault victim, appears to give a different version of the events than those seen in the video.
It notes that one of three individuals involved in the incident pushed the father “hard with both hands in his chest” causing him to step back.
This would appear to refer to the actions of Aly. The report identified this individual as the “suspect.”
“The suspect 鈥 then picked up a glass liquor bottle, raised it above his head multiple times in a manner which led (the victim) to believe that the suspect was going to strike him with it.”
The campus police report then gave a physical description that corresponds to Aly: “The suspect is described as tanned skin male (sic), tall, 6鈥6 鈥 6鈥8, large frame, black beard wearing a grey/black sweater and black pants.”
Part of the video was posted Monday by Toronto4Palestine, a leading local protest group over the past eight months of the Israel-Hamas war that was accused of antisemitism in the days after the conflict began. At that time, it had posted a statement on social media that was widely seen to deny, without basis,聽that Hamas was responsible for the Oct. 7 attack and to cast doubt on the Holocaust. The group subsequently said the post was not meant to deny the Holocaust, and deleted it “upon realizing the potential for misinterpretation.”
The 海角社区官网police news release provides fewer details of the alleged incident and makes no mention of other potential suspects.
In its public synopsis of the incident, police said that the victim was approached by the suspect at the encampment area; that the two began arguing; and that the suspect then assaulted the victim.
Shane Mart铆nez, a 海角社区官网lawyer representing Aly,聽said he had not yet received a summary of the case against Aly or a package containing the evidence that the Crown prosecutor has gathered and relied upon to聽support a criminal charge of assault.
But he said it was “clear” that his client “did not have a bottle, he did not wave it over anybody鈥檚 head, he did not threaten anybody.”
Mart铆nez referred to the unidentified individual who did brandish the bottle as someone who was physically outside the pro-Palestinian encampment and unaffiliated with the campus protest movement.
And he said that Aly “acted lawfully and de-escalated” the confrontation between the father and the man with the liquor bottle.
He said that in his mind, police charged “absolutely the wrong guy.”
Aly is scheduled to appear in court July 9 at 2 p.m.
