Toronto Publication Expands "IDF List" to Target Jewish Institutions
Davide Mastracci's "GTA to IDF" expands his original database to target Jewish institutions attended by IDF veterans. Critics warn of weaponized harassment amid record-breaking antisemitism in Canada
The Maple, a Toronto-based digital publication, has launched a new database targeting Greater Toronto Area (GTA) institutions connected to Jewish Canadians who served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), marking an escalation of a controversial project that began earlier this year by compiling personal information on individual IDF veterans.
The initiative, titled “GTA to IDF,” was released in early December by The Maple’s opinion editor Davide Mastracci, who describes it as an extension of his previous “Find IDF Soldiers” database. The new project profiles seven Jewish institutions—including summer camps, day schools, and synagogues—that were attended by at least four individuals listed in the original database of over 200 Jewish Canadian IDF veterans.
Pattern of Targeting Jewish Community
The latest database represents Mastracci’s second attempt to publicly catalog and profile members of the Canadian Jewish community based on their connection to Israel’s military. In February, Jewish Onliner reported that Mastracci had created a public list of 85 Jewish Canadians who served in the IDF, including Ben Mizrachi, a 22-year-old Canadian murdered by Hamas during the October 7th, 2023, attack at the Supernova music festival. The entry on Mizrachi omitted any mention of Hamas or the circumstances of his death.
Since its launch, the “Find IDF Soldiers” database has expanded to include 206 profiles, all compiled from publicly available information, according to The Maple’s website. The publication claims the project aims to understand “who Canadians that have joined the Israeli military are, why they made the choice they did, who or what influenced them to do so, what they did while in the military, and how they may feel about it.”
Now, Mastracci has turned his attention to the institutions themselves. The new “GTA to IDF” database includes detailed profiles of each institution, containing descriptions of their missions, public statements on Israel, charitable status records, references to the IDF made after October 7, 2023, and connections to individuals in the original database.
Mastracci’s Track Record of Hamas Support
Mastracci, who describes himself as an “Aspiring Marxist” on social media, has a documented history of expressing support for Hamas, which is designated as a terrorist organization by the Canadian government.
On the day of the October 7th massacre that killed over 1,200 people, including Mizrachi, Mastracci posted on social media: “If you aren’t willing to support the Palestinian resistance when it really matters—when it’s fighting back against the occupier—I don’t trust you, your politics, your supposed care for Palestinians, and certainly not any professed opposition to Israel and Zionism.”
He has also criticized Canadian political leaders who condemned Hamas’s actions and previously tweeted that if the Canadian government truly cared about fighting illegal occupation, “it would send weapons to Hamas.”
In another post, he declared: “I would 100% prefer living beside a Hamas-supporting Gazan to an average Israeli, and I think most people around the world would agree.”
The Maple’s website claims it is not accusing listed individuals of breaking Canadian law or participating in military crimes. However, it simultaneously asserts that “the Israeli military has been credibly accused by and/or before major international bodies of ethnic cleansing, war crimes, apartheid, and now genocide,” and challenges the legitimacy of Israel’s founding, inaccurately stating it was established “through the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from their land.”
Jewish Community Raises Alarm
Jewish advocacy organizations condemned the institutional database, expressing deep concern that publicly cataloging Jewish communal networks could fuel antisemitism during an unprecedented surge in threats against Canadian Jews.
They also warned that the database could provide a roadmap for hostile actors—whether foreign operatives or domestic extremists—seeking to identify and target Jewish institutions. Mastracci’s approach mirrors contemporary targeting efforts, including those by the Hezbollah-linked Hind Rajab Foundation in Belgium, which pursues lawfare campaigns against Israeli soldiers internationally.
When the original “Find IDF Soldiers” database launched in February, Paul Hirschson, Consul General of Israel in Montreal, condemned the project, stating: “The idea of compiling lists of Jews, most notoriously done by the Nazis, should be offensive to all believers in modernity, human rights, and democracy, Jew and non-Jew alike.”
Community advocates fear tangible consequences: parents may avoid enrolling their children in identified institutions out of safety concerns, while the schools and camps themselves face intensified pressure to enhance already-strained security measures.
Context of Rising Antisemitism
The project emerges at a moment of record-high antisemitism across Canada. According to B’nai Brith Canada’s 2024 audit, antisemitic incidents reached 6,219 reported cases—a staggering 91.5% increase from 2023 and the highest level ever recorded. Jewish schools, synagogues, and community centers have reported threats, vandalism, shootings at buildings, and harassment since October 2023.
In Toronto specifically, Jews remain the most targeted group for hate crimes. Toronto Police Service data from 2024 shows that 56% of reported hate crimes targeted the Jewish community. Law enforcement agencies have issued statements acknowledging the elevated risks facing Jewish institutions.
In August 2024, bomb threats targeted Jewish institutions across Canada. In Ontario, a government-commissioned report on antisemitism in K-12 schools found that Jewish schools faced graffiti, vandalism, bomb threats, and shootings at school buildings, with more than 40% of cases involving antisemitic incidents.