Toronto Mayor Rob Ford issued a rare apology to the LGBT community on Saturday after a group of protesters were verbally and physically harassed outside his Ford Fest annual barbecue.

"I didn't personally see it, I was in the tent, but it's terrible that things like that happen," Ford said at the Taste of Toronto festival on Saturday. "I apologize and we have to move on."

Despite the incident, Ford called Friday's barbecue "the best Ford Fest we've ever had." He estimated more than 15,000 supporters, commonly known as ‘Ford Nation’, were in attendance.

The mayor's words come on the heels of an earlier apology from his brother, Coun. Doug Ford, who also expressed his regret over the incident