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Montreal electronic traffic signs hacked to display pro-Palestinian political slogans
MONTREAL — Montreal police are investigating after electronic message boards at two road construction sites in Montreal displayed pro-Palestinian political slogans Wednesday morning instead of usual traffic alerts.
The message boards that normally advise motorists of roadwork were hacked to display phrases such as “free Palestine,” “escalate now,” and “globalize the intifada.” By the end of the morning, the original message had been restored at at least one of the sites.
Intifada, which means “shaking off” in Arabic, was coined to describe an uprising against Israel’s military occupation that erupted in 1987. What became known as the first intifada was marked by widespread Palestinian protests and a fierce Israeli response.
In the second uprising, which began in 2000, Palestinian militants carried out deadly suicide bombings on buses and at restaurants and hotels, eliciting crushing Israeli military reprisals.