Met deploys 100 more officers for London’s Jewish community after ambulance pelted with stones
The Metropolitan Police has announced the formation of a dedicated Community Protection Team, deploying 100 additional officers to safeguard London’s Jewish communities in response to a surge in antisemitic attacks and hate crimes across the capital.
The new unit is designed to provide a permanent, coordinated protective presence, moving beyond what the force described as short-term surges in policing. It will integrate neighbourhood policing with specialist protection and counter‑terrorism capabilities, creating what the Met said would be a “more visible, intelligence‑led and coordinated presence focused on protecting Jewish communities across London”.
Rising threat and recent incidents
The announcement follows a series of violent and targeted incidents in recent weeks. On Saturday 2 May, rocks were thrown at an ambulance operated by the Jewish community while it was transporting a patient in Edgware; a 35‑year‑old man was arrested on suspicion of aggravated criminal damage. Two days later, on the morning of 5 May, a synagogue was hit by a suspected arson attack. In a separate incident, two Jewish men were stabbed in Golders Green, an attack that is being treated by police as an act of terrorism. A 45‑year‑old man has been charged with attempted murder in connection with that stabbing.
In March, an arson attack destroyed four ambulances run by the Hatzola Jewish charity in Golders Green. Three additional suspects were arrested in April on arson charges relating to that incident. There was also an attempted firebombing at a London synagogue, and police made an arrest on Friday 1 May of a 57‑year‑old man on suspicion of causing fear or provocation of violence after reports that he had threatened a Jewish man using racially offensive language. Further arrests for racially aggravated harassment, criminal damage and public order offences took place in Brent and Croydon on Saturday 2 May.
In the past four weeks alone, the Metropolitan Police have arrested approximately 50 people for antisemitic hate crimes, with eight individuals charged. A further 28 arrests have been made in connection with arson investigations and other serious offences handled by Counter Terrorism Policing. In total, more than 80 arrests have been carried out in response to antisemitic hate crimes and the string of arson attacks.
Capabilities and support
The Community Protection Team will bring together neighbourhood policing officers, specialist protection teams and counter‑terrorism expertise under a single command structure. The Met said this integration would enable a “more visible, intelligence‑led and coordinated presence”, allowing officers to respond rapidly to threats while maintaining a sustained deterrent. The model is intended to offer a consistent level of protection, rather than relying on temporary reinforcements.
The team’s capabilities are underpinned by significant government funding. The Home Office is supporting the Met’s actions with £18 million, and an additional £4 million is available through the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant for community‑led and charitable work. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has confirmed that the government has committed a total of £25 million in new funding to protect Jewish communities, and noted that the UK’s national terrorism threat level has been raised to “severe”.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley has stated that Jewish communities are facing “sustained threats” from multiple sources, including hostile state actors, extreme right‑wing groups, elements of the extreme left, and Islamist terrorists. Detectives are examining potential Iranian links to the arson incidents, following warnings that Iran may be using criminal proxies for hostile activities. A pro‑Iran group, Harakat Ashab al‑Yamin al‑Islamia, has claimed responsibility for some of the recent attacks.
Data from the Community Security Trust (CST), a charity that works to protect British Jews from terrorism and antisemitism, recorded 3,700 instances of antisemitic hate in 2025, a 4% rise from 2024. In 2024 the charity logged 3,528 incidents, a decrease from the record high of 4,296 in 2023, which was largely fuelled by the response to the Hamas attack on Israel. The 2024 figures, however, remain significantly higher than pre‑2023 levels. The CST also noted a rise in online antisemitism, with 1,541 incidents recorded in 2025. Antisemitism has a long history in Britain, with Jewish communities facing persecution and expulsion in medieval times; while legal restrictions were eliminated by the 1800s, sentiment has persisted, particularly within far‑right groups, and the CST has recorded significant spikes in incidents following periods of conflict such as the 2014 and 2021 Israel‑Gaza conflicts and the ongoing war since October 7 2023.
The creation of the 100‑officer team comes after Sir Mark Rowley previously stated that 300 extra officers were needed to combat the rise in antisemitism. The new unit represents a third of that initial call. There have also been earlier concerns from Jewish leaders about the Met’s handling of protests; for example, in March 2026, leaders expressed deep concern after pro‑Palestine demonstrators were allowed to march near a synagogue on Shabbat.
