Mississauga Mayor Carolyn Parrish — facing calls for an apology for comments seeming to defend Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar — has a long history of antagonism toward Israel, dating back to her time as a Liberal MP, a perch she lost after insulting George W. Bush and all Americans.

“At a recent City Council meeting, Mayor Parrish drew a deeply offensive comparison between Yahya Sinwar, the former Hamas terrorist leader responsible for the October 7 terrorist attacks and countless innocent lives lost, and Nelson Mandela, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate known worldwide for his fight for human rights and peace. That comparison was both despicable and telling,” the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), a leading Canadian Jewish group, said in a statement Tuesday.