While it was quiet inside Scotiabank Centre for the opening matches of the Davis Cup tie on Friday, it was anything but outside the downtown arena as hundreds of demonstrators marched through the streets of Halifax protesting Israel’s participation in the two-day tennis event against Canada.

“There are lots of people unhappy about this,” said Windsor’s Andrew Glencross, holding a sign that read: ‘Don’t let tennis hide a genocide’. “This is not just some fringe extremist group.”

Organized by Palestine Solidarity Halifax, the protestors gathered for a brief rally on the Garrison Grounds. Holding banners and Palestinian flags, beating drums while bellowing chants of Free Palestine, the throng began their long, peaceful march towards Halifax City Hall making stops along the way.

Leading the parade, which snarled rush hour traffic, were several marchers holding an oversized tennis net with the message, ‘Don’t Play Ball.’ The protestors timed their march so that they would reach Scotiabank Centre at 4 p.m., the start time of the first Davis Cup singles match.

Under the watchful eye of bicycle-riding police officers, the demonstrators stopped on Brunswick Street to voice their displeasure with the tennis matches happening inside an empty arena.

“This is a classic example of what they call sports washing, where a state or a corporation tries to make their reputation look better through supporting sports, which are supposedly politically neutral,” Glencross said. “But we know that’s not the case. Sports are always embedded in whatever’s going on politically.

“It’s just really inconsistent of Canada, the tennis federation and Halifax to be hosting Israel when there are multiple war crimes going on. Not allowing spectators is not good enough. We want it cancelled. We don’t want to have war criminals here in our city, trying to make their state look good.”

The demonstration continued down the hill and wrapped up with speeches outside city hall.

Activists had urged Tennis Canada and the International Tennis Federation to cancel the Davis Cup tie, condemning Israel’s actions in Gaza and the West Bank. A letter signed by more than 400 Canadian athletes and academics, including Olympic runner Moh Ahmed, was sent to Tennis Canada last week.

Instead, Tennis Canada announced on Tuesday that two days of matches would be played in a closed venue due to safety concerns.

Noah Shack, CEO of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, called the protests “shameful.”

“This should be a wakeup call for all of us just how the extremism in our streets is impacting Canadian life and it needs to be addressed,” Shack said in a phone interview on Friday.

“The extremists are making these threats, are harassing people and intimidating folks to the extent that Canadian fans can’t be in the stands to cheer on Team Canada at the Davis Cup. Sport is something that unifies people across cultures, across countries, around the world. It’s such an important unifier that we all look forward to the Olympics and all these types of international sporting competitions. It’s why we enjoy cheering on Team Canada whenever our athletes put on our nation’s flag. It’s a travesty that there are people who are trying, through threats and intimidation, to limit our ability to come together through sport and to cheer on our national team.

“We’re at a crossroads. Are we a country where peace, order and good government prevail or are we a country where hate, intimidation, harassment and threats dictate how we live our lives?”

The matches will continue behind closed doors on Saturday while more protests are also planned at the Halifax Oval.

Alisa Snyder of Ketch Harbour wanted to see Canada take a stand like India did at the 1974 Davis Cup. India refused to play South Africa in the final round of the Davis Cup because of the South African government’s policy of apartheid.

“Team Israel is a representative of the state of Israel unfortunately,” Snyder said. “India stepped out of the competition with South Africa because they were opposed to the apartheid regime. It’s symbolic. It’s a way to boycott. And it’s only with boycotts and sanctions that Israel will understand that if political leaders are not willing to hold the government of Israel accountable, citizens are.”

Tennis was played before a smattering of athletes, staff and officials with Canada winning both singles matches.

Montreal’s Gabriel Diallo dropped Daniel Cukierman 6-1, 6-2 in the opener and Liam Draxl of Newmarket, Ont., put Canada up 2-0 with a 7-6 (5), 6-4 victory over Orel Kimhi.

“Obviously it was interesting conditions out there with an empty stadium,” Diallo said in a post-match news conference. “But it’s part of our job to try and adapt to it.

“Yes, the conditions of the game are definitely different than what we’re used to. It would be nice to have fans in the stadium but sadly it’s something that’s out of our control. The conditions are a lot like how they were (five years ago0 during COVID.”

Three matches are set for Saturday in the best-of-five tie. Draxl and Calgary’s Cleeve Harper face Jordan Hasson and Ofek Shimanov in a doubles match. If Israel wins in doubles, singles matches featuring Diallo against Kimhi and Draxl facing Cuikerman will follow.

The winning country advances to the 2026 Davis Cup Qualifiers.