{"id":491725,"date":"2026-03-24T01:00:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-24T01:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/491725\/"},"modified":"2026-03-24T01:00:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T01:00:12","slug":"we-are-scared-terrified-london-jews-on-edge-after-antisemitic-arson-attack","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/491725\/","title":{"rendered":"‘We are scared, terrified’: London Jews on edge after antisemitic arson attack"},"content":{"rendered":"

LONDON \u2014 In London\u2019s Golders Green, with its large Jewish community, residents warned of growing antisemitism Monday after an early morning arson attack<\/a> on four volunteer ambulances run by a Jewish organization.<\/p>\n

Local people stopped at the end of the street where the fire took place, to survey the scene as they made their way to school or work. The ambulances were parked right next to a synagogue.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow could anyone do that to ambulances?\u201d asked Steven, a 65-year-old resident of the north London district, after police said the attack was being treated as \u201can antisemitic hate crime.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Golders Green, many children attend Jewish schools and many restaurants and grocery stores are kosher. Most locals keep the phone number of the Hatzola community ambulance \u2014 whose vehicles were destroyed \u2014 on their fridges, one resident told AFP.<\/p>\n

Hatzola, which was established in 1979 and is operated by volunteers, provides free medical transportation and emergency response to those living in north London.<\/p>\n

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Many said they were woken up during the night by a loud noise and then saw smoke.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not surprised that the Jewish community was targeted. It is a continuous ongoing thing,\u201d said Adam Waters, 36, who works for a Jewish community organization. \u201cI am surprised, though, that they targeted ambulances.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n\t\tA family walk past police forensic officers working in a street near to the scene of an antisemitic arson attack in the Golders Green neighborhood of north London on March 23, 2026, an incident where volunteer ambulances run by a Jewish organization were set on fire. (Henry Nicholls \/ AFP)<\/p>\n

Waters said he feels \u201csafe\u201d in London, but nonetheless has experienced daily \u201clow-level antisemitism,\u201d including \u201cpeople chanting \u2018Jew.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has increased since the war. But it has happened my whole life,\u201d he added. He also said that he feels \u201cvery British\u201d and is \u201crelatively confident\u201d he will stay in London for the rest of his life.<\/p>\n

But as for \u201cmy son, I don\u2019t know,\u201d he added with concern.<\/p>\n

Local mother: Jewish community felt safer in the 1980s<\/p>\n

In tense scenes in London on Monday, several men briefly challenged an Al Jazeera camera crew<\/a> who were present.<\/p>\n

Yael Gluck, a mother of two, said, \u201cWe are scared, terrified,\u201d adding that the Jewish community felt safer during her childhood in the 1980s.<\/p>\n

But \u201cantisemitism is too large now. When it is not happening in London, Manchester, it is in Sweden, Austria. We are not safe anywhere in the world,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Gluck said she was thinking about moving to Israel and no longer went into central London. \u201cIt is not safe for us,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\tUK Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis (C) tours the area in the Golders Green neighborhood of north London on March 23, 2026, after volunteer ambulances run by a Jewish organization were set on fire overnight. (Henry Nicholls \/ AFP)<\/p>\n

Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis vowed: \u201cWe\u2019re not going to be intimidated by terrorists, and this was a terrorist attack.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOur\u2026 volunteer ambulance corps is an extraordinary service, whose sole mission is to protect life, Jewish and non-Jewish alike,\u201d Mirvis said on X.<\/p>\n

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the attack \u201chorrific news\u201d and urged Britain\u2019s communities to \u201cstand together at a moment like this,\u201d writing on X: \u201cAntisemitism has no place in our society.\u201d<\/p>\n

Starmer also held a roundtable with Jewish community representatives at 10 Downing Street in the wake of the attack.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\tBritain\u2019s Prime Minister Keir Starmer (C) holds a meeting with representatives of the Jewish community inside 10 Downing Street in London, on March 23, 2026, following an antisemitic arson attack in the Golders Green neighborhood of north London overnight where volunteer ambulances run by a Jewish organization were set on fire. (Toby Melville \/ POOL \/ AFP)<\/p>\n

The London Fire Brigade said it was alerted to vehicles on fire Sunday night at Highfield Court in Golders Green, a north London area with a substantial Jewish population, at 1:40 a.m. (0140 GMT).<\/p>\n

Some 40 firefighters called to the scene found that the cylinders stored on the vehicles had exploded, breaking windows in a nearby building.<\/p>\n

London Mayor Sadiq Khan condemned the attack and said police patrols would be increased in the area.<\/p>\n

Iran-linked terror group claims responsibility for arson<\/p>\n

The little-known Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (HAYI) group, meaning The Islamic Movement of the People of the Right Hand, claimed responsibility for the attack in a video posted on its recently created Telegram channel.<\/p>\n

The group, which the SITE monitoring service said was aligned with Iran, has also claimed similar attacks this month in Belgium and in the Netherlands.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\tBritain\u2019s Health Secretary Wes Streeting (L) meets with members of the local community in the Golders Green neighborhood of north London on March 23, 2026, after volunteer ambulances run by a Jewish organization were set on fire overnight. (Henry NICHOLLS \/ AFP)<\/p>\n

Counterterror police are now leading the inquiry, even though it was not yet determined to be a terror attack.<\/p>\n

\u201cEstablishing the authenticity and accuracy of this claim will be a priority for the investigation team,\u201d Detective Chief Superintendent Luke Williams said at the scene.<\/p>\n

He added that \u201cCCTV footage appears to show three people in hoods pouring an accelerant on to the vehicles before igniting them and fleeing.\u201d<\/p>\n

There have been no arrests yet, and police appealed for information.<\/p>\n

While the overnight attack did not cause any injuries, it was distressing for the community, which values the Hatzola ambulance service.<\/p>\n

UK Health Minister Wes Streeting said the government would provide four replacement ambulances by Tuesday morning.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a>
\n\t\tBurnt ambulances in a parking lot at Golders Green in London, Monday, March 23, 2026, after an arson attack on four vehicles belonging to a Jewish ambulance service in London. (AP Photo\/Alberto Pezzali)<\/p>\n

The arson attack came after a spate of other antisemitic incidents<\/a>.<\/p>\n

On October 2, 2025, during the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur, an attack on a synagogue in Manchester killed two and seriously injured three, prompting an outpouring of emotion nationwide and increasing anxiety among Jewish communities.<\/p>\n

Last month, a UK court jailed two men for life after police foiled a separate plot to carry out an Islamic State-inspired gun attack<\/a> on a Jewish gathering in Manchester.<\/p>\n

And two Iranians appeared in court<\/a> in London last week, accused of spying on the Jewish community in London on behalf of Tehran.<\/p>\n

Israeli embassy alleges \u2018silence and inaction\u2019 in UK<\/p>\n

The Israeli embassy in London, which has long criticized Britain for failing to do more to tackle antisemitism, said the fire-bombings followed years of \u201chate-filled marches\u201d in support of the Palestinians, along with incitement and intimidation.<\/p>\n

\u201cEnough is enough,\u201d it said on X, calling for \u201cdecisive action to put an end to this climate of intimidation before it spirals further. Silence and inaction are no longer an option.\u201d<\/p>\n

Antisemitism is rampant on the streets of London. <\/p>\n

Firebombing ambulances is not an anomaly, it is the consequence, after years of hate-filled marches, incitement and intimidation being tolerated in plain sight. <\/p>\n

Enough is enough. There must be a through investigation and\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/p1u4T0GK2X<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Israel in the UK ???????????????????? (@IsraelinUK) March 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

President Isaac Herzog, meanwhile, posted: \u201cBritain\u2019s Jewish community is one of the oldest and most vibrant in Europe, and it must be able to live, pray, and thrive in safety and security.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\u201cOn behalf of the State of Israel, I send a message of strength and solidarity to our sisters and brothers in the British Jewish community. We in Israel care for every Jew everywhere in the world and embrace you at this difficult moment,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will continue to stand together shoulder-to-shoulder with you in the critical fight against antisemitism.\u201d<\/p>\n

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