Attacks on the Jewish community in London are “gathering momentum<\/b>,” Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis has warned, following another reported arson incident at a north-west London synagogue. This latest event, targeting Kenton United Synagogue in Harrow overnight, is part of a disturbing series of arson attacks on Jewish properties this month.<\/p>\n
Counter-terrorism police have launched an investigation into these incidents, exploring potential links to a group known as Ashab al-Yamin, which has claimed responsibility online for attacks on Jewish targets across Europe. Authorities are also examining public reports suggesting this group may have ties to Iran.<\/p>\n
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Vicki Evans confirmed that police are actively investigating these potential connections. “We are aware of public reporting that suggests this group may have links to Iran – as you would expect we will continue to explore that question as our investigation evolves,” she stated. Evans added that officers are considering whether tactics previously observed, such as the use of criminal proxies, are being employed in London. She emphasized that individuals involved in such violence, often motivated by “quick cash for their crimes,” could face serious prosecution under the National Security Act<\/b>, carrying “significant sentences and lifetime restrictions.”<\/p>\nWidespread Condemnation and Increased Policing<\/h3>\n
Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis described the latest attack as “cowardly<\/b>,” expressing grave concern. “A sustained campaign of violence and intimidation against the Jewish community of the UK is gathering momentum,” he wrote on social media. “This sustained attack on our community’s ability to worship and live in safety is an attack on the values that bind us all together.”<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer also condemned the attacks, stating he was “appalled” and that “visible policing<\/b>” would be increased. “This is abhorrent and it will not be tolerated. Attacks on our Jewish community are attacks on Britain,” Sir Keir wrote, vowing that perpetrators would be found and brought to justice.<\/p>\n
London Mayor Sadiq Khan reiterated the city’s resilience. “There can never be any justification for attacking our Jewish friends, neighbours and colleagues. Those responsible are seeking to promote fear, hatred and division,” he said, adding that London’s history shows it will “never back down against terrorists.”<\/p>\n
At Kenton synagogue, officers on “deterrence and reassurance patrols” discovered damage to a window overnight. Further inspection revealed smoke inside a room and evidence of a bottle containing an accelerant thrown through the window. The London Fire Brigade confirmed no further fire risk, and minor smoke damage was reported with no injuries.<\/p>\n
Rabbi Yehuda Black of Kenton synagogue expressed his distress: “I was very upset to hear about what happened. Our synagogue is a beautiful synagogue. It’s so unfortunate that it has been damaged in such a way.” The synagogue was temporarily closed but hopes to reopen soon.<\/p>\n
The Met Police confirmed they are investigating the Kenton attack alongside incidents at Finchley Reform Synagogue, a building used by a Jewish charity in Hendon, and ambulances belonging to a Jewish charity set alight in Golders Green last month. An arson attack at a Persian language media organisation is also under investigation.<\/p>\n
Community organizations have voiced their alarm. The Community Security Trust (CST) thanked emergency services and is supporting affected locations. The Campaign Against Antisemitism described the situation as “terrifyingly becoming a spate of daily arson attacks<\/b> on the Jewish community.” Saul Taylor, President of United Synagogue, urged the Prime Minister to publicly declare what the Jewish community has long known: “this is an epidemic of anti-Jewish hate<\/b>.”<\/p>\n
In response, the Met Police announced increased patrols across north-west London, deploying more officers, stop and search powers, and armed and counter-terrorism units to protect communities and deter further incidents.<\/p>\n
#LondonAttacks #JewishCommunity #ArsonAttack #CounterTerrorism #SynagogueSecurity #HateCrime #NationalSecurity #UKNews #CommunitySafety #Antisemitism<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Chief Rabbi Sounds Alarm as Arson Attacks Target London Synagogues Attacks on the Jewish community in London are “gathering momentum,” Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis has warned, following another reported arson incident at a north-west London synagogue. This latest event, targeting Kenton United Synagogue in Harrow overnight, is part of a disturbing series of arson […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3482,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3481","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-iran_news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3481","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3481"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3481\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3482"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3481"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3481"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vanak.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3481"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}