Second Cup at Montreal Jewish hospital shut down over alleged Nazi salute

Second Cup Canada is moving to shut down a franchisee’s cafés located in Montreal’s Jewish General Hospital after they claim the franchisee was filmed apparently chanting the “Final Solution is coming your way” referencing Nazi Germany’s slaughter of millions of Jewish people during the Holocaust.

Footage that appears to have been recorded at a Thursday protest at Concordia University also shows a woman performing the Nazi salute.

Second Cup Canada president Peter Mammas told Global News the company verified the woman in the video is Mai Abdulhadi, who owns two Second Cup locations inside the hospital.

“We spoke to a lot of employees and they confirmed to us that, yes, it was her in the videos,” Mammas said in a phone interview, saying that employees who work at Abdulhadi’s cafés and Second Cup Canada employees who visit the sites confirmed it was her.

Global News made several attempts to contact Abdulhadi but did not receive a response by deadline.

The Integrated University Health and Social Service Centres (CIUSSS), Quebec’s health care provider, said it was made aware of a video containing “antisemitic (sic) and hateful messaging” on social media.

“This video is related to a franchisee of Second Cup, one of the private tenants operating within the Jewish General Hospital,” the statement said.