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UK PM vows to find arsonists of London Jewish sites / Photo: JUSTIN TALLIS - AFP
UK PM vows to find arsonists of London Jewish sites
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer vowed Sunday to bring perpetrators of recent arson attacks on Jewish sites in London to justice as Britain's chief rabbi said "a sustained campaign of violence and intimidation" against Jews was accelerating.
The British capital's Metropolitan Police said it was investigating whether the spate of incidents in northwest London, the latest of which came on Saturday night, had been carried out by Iranian proxies.
A little-known group, Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (HAYI), which has links to Iran, has claimed responsibility for many of the recent attacks, according to SITE Intelligence Group.
Starmer said in a post on X that he was "appalled" by the incidents.
"This is abhorrent and it will not be tolerated. Attacks on our Jewish community are attacks on Britain," the prime minister said in a post on X.
"We will not rest in the pursuit of perpetrators."
Counter-terror officers from London's Metropolitan Police are investigating multiple arson or attempted arson attacks against Jewish properties in Britain's capital in the past month.
Officers have stepped up patrols in areas with large Jewish populations, amid an upsurge in antisemitic incidents.
In the latest incident, a fire caused minor smoke damage to a room at Kenton United Synagogue in Harrow on Saturday night, said the Community Security Trust (CST), which provides safety advice to Jewish groups. No injuries were reported.
A property formerly used by the charity Jewish Futures was similarly targeted in nearby Hendon on Friday night. Again, no one was injured.
"A sustained campaign of violence and intimidation against the Jewish community of the UK is gathering momentum," the chief rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis, said in a post on X.
"Thank God, no lives have been lost, but we cannot, and must not, wait for that to change before we understand just how dangerous this moment is for all of our society," he added.
- Iranian 'threat' considered -
In a statement Sunday, the Met said that officers on patrol noticed damage to the window of the Kenton synagogue on Saturday night.
"On further inspection they saw smoke inside a room and evidence that a bottle with some sort of accelerant had been thrown through the window."
A police statement added that, as with the other recent events, counter-terror officers were leading the investigation.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Vicki Evans said the force was considering whether Iran's "routine" use of criminal proxies was a factor.
"Individuals carrying out these crimes often have no allegiance to the cause and are taking quick cash for their crimes," she added.
Lance said that as the conflict in the Middle East "continues to evolve", police "remain alive to the threat of Iranian state aggression in the UK".
On Wednesday, police arrested two people over an arson attack on a synagogue in nearby Finchley.
That evening, a burning object was thrown towards the offices of Persian media outlet Iran International, which is critical of Iran's clerical leadership.
It landed in a car park and no one was injured.
In late March, four Jewish community ambulances were torched in Golders Green, also in north London.
HAYI group has also claimed similar attacks in Belgium and the Netherlands.
(A.Moore--TAG)
