Arson attack on London volunteer ambulances being treated as antisemitic hate crime, police say

Four ambulances belonging to the Jewish community ambulance service have been set on fire in Golders Green, north London, with police saying they were treating the incident as an antisemitic hate crime.The prime minister, Keir Starmer, denounced it as a shocking attack on London’s Jewish community, while the city’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, called it cowardly. The UK’s chief rabbi, Sir Ephraim Mirvis, described the incident as a “sickening assault – not only on the Jewish community, but on the values we share as a society”.Mark Gardner, from the Community Security Trust, a charity that monitors antisemitism and provides security for the UK Jewish community, said it was an attack on Jews as well as an attack on the whole of Britain.Starmer said: “This is a deeply shocking antisemitic arson attack. My thoughts are with the Jewish community who are waking up this morning to this horrific news.” He added: “Antisemitism has no place in our society. Anyone with any information must come forward to the police.”The Metropolitan Police confirmed the incident was being treated as an antisemitic hate crime. Photograph: ShutterstockKhan said: “This is a cowardly attack on the Jewish community. I am in close contact with the police who are stepping up patrols in the area, and I urge anyone with information to come forward. Londoners will never be cowed by this kind of hatred and intimidation.”In a statement on X, Mirvis said: “Our Hatzola volunteer ambulance corps is an extraordinary service, whose sole mission is to protect life, Jewish and non-Jewish alike,” he said. “The targeting of Hatzola by people so committed to terror, hatred and the desecration of life is a most painful illustration of the ongoing battle between those who sanctify life and those who seek to destroy it.”Gardner told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Ambulances being blown up in the middle of the night in London is … an attack on London, it’s also an attack on the UK. And this always gets spoken about in terms of anti-Jewish violence. But I’m British, so it’s an attack on Britain as well, and it’s important that it’s regarded as such.”Officers were called to Highfield Road in Golders Green at about 1.45am on Monday after receiving reports of a fire.The ambulances were run by Jewish charity Hatzola, which was established in 1979 and is run by volunteers, providing free medical transportation and emergency response to those living in north London.Police and firefighters at the scene on Monday. Photograph: Jonathan Brady/PAThe London fire brigade (LFB) said it had sent six fire engines and about 40 firefighters to the fire, which damaged four vehicles. Several cylinders on the vehicles exploded and caused windows to break in an adjacent block of flats, the LFB said. No injuries were initially reported.The health secretary, 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 come forward to the police. We must stand together against antisemitic hatred.”The Metropolitan Police confirmed the incident was being treated as an antisemitic hate crime.Supt Sarah Jackson, who leads policing in the area, said: “We know this incident will cause a great deal of community concern and officers remain on scene to carry out urgent inquiries. We are in the process of examining CCTV and are aware of online footage. We believe we are looking for three suspects at this early stage.“There have been no arrests yet, and we would urge anyone with information to please contact us as soon as possible – you can do so anonymously if you wish. We will be engaging with faith leaders and carrying out additional patrols in the local area as we continue our investigation to provide reassurance and a highly visible presence.”Shomrim, a non-profit organisation which operates a neighbourhood watch in the Golders Green neighbourhood, said it was “aware of loud explosions” early on Monday morning.“Emergency services are on scene following a deliberate incident involving #Hatzola ambulances being set alight,” the group said in a post on X. “The explosions were caused by oxygen tanks not a bomb or explosive device. Although some buildings have been evacuated no casualties have been reported. Please avoid the area while investigations continue.”Shomrim said the facility run by Hatzola remained fully operational.Dean Cohen, a Golders Green ward councillor who was at the scene, told Jewish News the fact the incident had taken place in the “car park of a synagogue is particularly chilling and will send shock waves through our community at a time of already heightened fears over antisemitism in the UK”.The Community Security Trust confirmed in a statement on X that it was assisting police in their inquiries. “We are aware of multiple Hatzola ambulances that have been deliberately set alight in London,” it said. “This has obvious comparison to similar antisemitic arson attacks recently in Belgium and the Netherlands. No injuries have been reported at this time and we are helping MPSBarnet with their inquiries.”