British Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has admitted that antisemitism continues to rise in the United Kingdom following an arson attack on four Jewish volunteer ambulances belonging to the Hatzolah organization in Golders Green, north London, The Telegraph reported on Monday.
Counter-terrorism police are leading the investigation into the incident, which occurred outside a synagogue early Monday morning. The attack is being treated as a hate crime.
In a speech to the Community Security Trust (CST), the charity that protects Jewish communities, Mahmood described the “abhorrent crime” as compelling Britain to confront the reality that Jews are living in fear and forced to hide their faith.
“History has repeatedly screamed its warning at us. And yet, here we are again, in 2026, with the oldest hatred rising once more. Today, Jews in this country are being forced to live a smaller life: they are hiding the signs of their faith. They are fearful as they send their children to school. Even when they attend a hospital appointment,” she said.
Mahmood pledged that the perpetrators of the “warped attack” on the ambulance service would be “pursued and made to face the consequences of their vile actions”.
Investigators are searching for three men captured on CCTV approaching the ambulances in Highfield Road at around 1:30 a.m. Monday.
Israeli embassy sources told The Telegraph the firebombing bore the hallmarks of an Iran-backed operation. The group Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia, a new Islamist organization linked to Iran, appeared to claim responsibility in an online video.
On Monday evening, Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley announced increased security measures for Jewish communities, including extra visible armed officers, an additional 264 neighbourhood officers in vulnerable areas, and undercover specialists to counter potential terrorist or drone threats.
He told the CST he had three messages for the Jewish community: “First the threat is serious and we fully understand its weight. Second: we are responding with the highest level of sustained operational commitment. Third: we stand with you, not just in words, but in visible, daily action.”
Mahmood described the Golders Green attack as more than an assault on one organization, but “an attack on this country and on us all”.
“Jewish life in this country is indivisible from our national life. Freedom of Jewish worship is an embodiment of who we are – as is the freedom of British Jews to go about their lives in safety and without fear,” she added.
Mahmood acknowledged a “wider societal failure” in addressing hostility toward Jews, stating: “It is my firmly held view that we must tackle the permissive environment that allows antisemitism, and all extremism, to fester.”
She highlighted new legislation to combat online antisemitism, an enhanced Home Office unit to prevent hate preachers from entering the UK, and a review of public order and hate crime laws to “keep hatred and intimidation off our streets”.
London has seen a sharp rise in incidents of antisemitism in recent years. Last month, a bakery in London owned by Jews was vandalized following a pro-Palestinian Arab protest that accused the company of “funding Israel.”
In December, anti-Israel protesters in London targeted an Israeli-owned bakery.
In November, police in London moved an anti-Israel protest away from St. John’s Wood Synagogue after dozens of demonstrators gathered outside the building.
A month prior, a lecture by an Israeli academic at City St. George’s, University of London was disrupted when anti-Israel activists burst into his classroom, shouting accusations and threats.
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