Mother and son deny fire-bombing Jewish school

A mother and son were among three people who pleaded not guilty to charges arising from an arson attack on a Jewish elementary school in Montreal.

Simon Zogheib and Sleiman Elmerhebi, both 18, are accused of arson and conspiracy.

Rouba Fahd Elmerhebi, 36, the mother of Elmerhebi, is charged with being an accessory after the fact.

They are accused of firebombing the library at the United Talmud Torah elementary school. The school was closed at the time, but the fire destroyed library books and damaged a computer system.

A note left at the scene said the attack was in retaliation for recent Israeli attacks on Palestinians, including the killing of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, the founder of the militant Palestinian Islamic group Hamas.

The three suspects entered their not guilty pleas yesterday during a video court appearance from a police operations centre. They were accompanied by two lawyers and opted for trial by judge and jury.

The three will remain in custody until they return to court tomorrow for a bail hearing.

Montreal police arrested five people early Friday morning and spent most of the day questioning the suspects.

Two 18-year-old men were released without charges after being questioned by police.

The arson attack elicited widespread support for the victims, including a financial pledge from actor Russell Crowe to help replace books in the library.