UTM’s Muslim Students’ Association (MSA) sent a legal letter to Ontario Energy Minister Stephen Lecce, a month after he called the group a “hateful, antisemitic, and anti-democratic mob” for organizing a “Honouring our Martyrs” student commemoration on October 7.

The letter, issued by the MSA’s lawyer Jeff Saikaley and obtained by The Varsity, claims Lecce made defamatory and libellous claims that are “completely and absolutely false.” It calls on Lecce to publish a retraction and apology for his X post, as well as provide $2,500 in compensation for legal costs. 

Saikaley wrote that Lecce has until January 6, 2026, to respond and that legal action will be considered if the deadline passes. 

The October 2 joint social media post by the UTMSU, Palestinian Youth Movement Toronto, and Association of Palestinian Students at UTM stated that the commemoration planned outside the Student Centre on October 7 would ensure “the martyrs of Palestine are never forgotten” and that it would “honour their legacy.” 

In an October 6 post on X, Lecce denounced the organizers, and wrote, “It’s beyond appalling to think that this morally degenerate group will glorify the barbaric murder of 1,200 kids, mothers, fathers, and grandparents.” 

Lecce added, “This hateful, antisemitic, and anti-democratic mob should be condemned and banned from any campus. This poisonous ideology is entirely incompatible with well-established Canadian values.” 

The Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killed approximately 1,200 Israelis and took 250 hostage. Since then, Israel’s attacks on Gaza have killed 70,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza health ministry.

The UTM MSA posted a statement on Instagram the day after Lecce’s post, demanding that he publicly retract and apologize for his remarks.

“Misrepresenting our event, ‘Honouring our Martyrs,’ as one that glorifies murder is dangerous,” the statement read. “Calling for the banning of a Muslim student association under such assumptions fosters hatred toward Muslims and contributes to an unsafe campus environment.”

The group added that “reckless language that paints Muslims as inherently tied to violence fuels the very climate that led to [the 2021 London] atrocity.”

Saikaley told The Varsity that they had not heard from Lecce as of writing. Lecce did not immediately respond for comment.