Arson attack on London volunteer ambulances being treated as antisemitic hate crime, police say | London
Four ambulances belonging to the Jewish community ambulance service were set on fire in Golders Green, north London, and police said they were treating the incident as an “anti-Semitic hate crime”.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned the attack as a shocking attack on London’s Jewish community, while the city’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, described it as cowardly. Mark Gardner, Community Safety TrustThe charity, which monitors antisemitism and ensures the safety of the UK Jewish community, said it was an attack on society as a whole as well as on Jews.
Starmer said: “This is an extremely shocking anti-Semitic arson attack. My thoughts are with the Jewish community who woke up this morning to this terrible news.” He added: “Antisemitism has no place in our society. Anyone with any information should contact the police.”
Khan said: “This is a cowardly attack on the Jewish community. I am in close contact with police, who have increased patrols in the area, and I urge anyone with information to come forward. Londoners will never give in to this kind of hatred and intimidation.”
Gardner told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “The blowing up of ambulances in London in the middle of the night… is an attack on London, it’s also an attack on the UK. And it’s always talked about in terms of anti-Semitic violence. But I’m British, so it’s an attack on Britain as well, and it’s important that it’s treated as such.”
Police officers were called to Highfield Road in Golders Green at around 1.45am on Monday after receiving reports of a fire.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed the incident was being treated as an anti-Semitic hate crime.
The ambulances were run by Jewish charity Hatzola, which was founded in 1979 and is run by volunteers, providing free medical transport and emergency care to residents of North London.
The London Fire Brigade (LFB) said it sent six fire trucks and around 40 firefighters to the blaze, which damaged four vehicles. The LFB said several cylinders in the vehicles exploded, causing windows in an adjacent block of flats to shatter. No injuries were initially reported.
Health Minister Wes Streeting said in a post on X: “This is a sickening attack on Jewish ambulances. Thank goodness there appear to be no injuries.”
“Anyone with information should contact the police. We must stand together against anti-Semitic hatred.”
Supervisor Sarah Jackson, who is leading policing efforts in the area, said: “We know this incident will cause great concern to the community and officers will remain at the scene to carry out urgent investigations.
“We are in the process of reviewing CCTV and are aware of online footage. We believe we are searching for three suspects at this early stage.”
“No arrests have yet been made and we would appeal to anyone with information to contact us as soon as possible – you can also do so anonymously if you wish.
“We will be in contact with faith leaders and carrying out additional patrols in the local area as we continue our investigation to provide security and maintain a highly visible presence.”
Shomrim, a nonprofit organization that runs a neighborhood watch in the Golders Green neighborhood, said it was “aware of strong explosions” early Monday morning.
“Emergency services arrived at the scene following a deliberate incident that resulted in #Hatzola ambulances being set on fire,” the group said in its post on X. “The explosions were not bombs or explosives, but were caused by oxygen tanks. Although some buildings were evacuated, no casualties were reported. Please avoid the area while investigations continue.”
Shomrim said the north-west London facility operated by Hatzola remained fully operational.
Golders Green ward councilor Dean Cohen, who was at the scene, told Jewish News that the incident “happened in the car park of a synagogue is particularly chilling and will send shockwaves through our community at a time when fears about antisemitism are already growing in the UK”.
In a statement about X, the Community Security Trust confirmed it was assisting police with their investigations.
“We are aware that several Hatzola ambulances were deliberately set on fire in London,” the statement said. “This has an obvious comparison with similar anti-Semitic arson attacks that occurred recently in Belgium and the Netherlands.
“No injuries have been reported at this time and we are assisting MPSBarnet with their investigation.”
