TORONTO - A Madrassah under investigation by York Regional Police for possible hate crimes has had its weekend classes canned by the Toronto District School Board (TDSB).

TDSB officials on Wednesday said the Madrassah, an Islamic school, cannot stage weekend classes at David and Mary Thomson Collegiate until a police probe is complete.

York Police Const. Rebecca Boyd said the investigation is ongoing and there are no new developments.

The Imam of the Madrassah couldn't be reached for comment despite repeated phone calls.
TDSB officials said they've had a good dialogue with the Madrassah until now.

"We've had a long relationship with this organization and there have been no problems to date," spokeswoman Shari Schwartz-Maltz said. "When the situation came to our attention, it was something that we needed to investigate."

Schwartz-Maltz said her officials have asked for a meeting with school administrators to discuss the issue.

The cancellation stems from online materials last week that called ancient Jews "treacherous" and "crafty."

One line contrasted Islam with "the Jews and the Nazis." The comments were later pulled from the site and an apology issued.

The Madrassah has been using board facilities for more than 30 years without problems, board officials said.

Students of the Madrassah attend the collegiate every Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Board officials said the Madrassah only has three classes left for this school year.