LONDON — An attempted arson attack caused minor smoke damage at a synagogue in North London overnight, marking the third incident targeting Jewish sites in the city within a week, authorities said Sunday, as concerns grow over what officials describe as a coordinated pattern.
Police said a window at the Kenton United Synagogue in Harrow was damaged and a bottle containing an accelerant was thrown inside, causing smoke damage to a room. No injuries were reported.
Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, the U.K.’s chief rabbi, warned the incidents reflect a “sustained campaign of violence and intimidation” against Britain’s Jewish community, adding that “we cannot, and must not, wait” for loss of life before recognizing the severity of the threat.
Keir Starmer said he was “appalled,” calling the attacks “abhorrent” and vowing those responsible “will be found and brought to justice.”
Authorities say the Kenton attack came just a day after an attempt to ignite bottles of flammable liquid outside a former Jewish charity building in nearby Hendon. Earlier in the week, a synagogue in Finchley was also targeted, leading to multiple arrests. In late March, four Jewish community ambulances were set ablaze in Golders Green.
London’s Metropolitan Police said additional uniformed and plainclothes officers have been deployed across northwest London, while counterterrorism units are leading the investigations due to “similar circumstances and online claims of responsibility.” Officials say they have not formally linked all incidents but are examining potential connections.
The wave of attacks has extended beyond Jewish sites. Authorities are also probing incidents involving a Persian-language media outlet critical of Iran’s government. In a separate scare, police closed areas near the Israeli Embassy in London after suspicious items — later deemed harmless — were discovered following online threats.
A little-known group, Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia, has claimed responsibility for several incidents online. Israeli officials have described it as a newly formed entity with suspected ties to an Iranian proxy, though some security experts caution the group may be more of a loose label than an organized network.
British intelligence agency MI5 has warned that more than 20 potentially lethal Iran-linked plots were disrupted in the year leading up to October, underscoring broader concerns about state-backed activity on European soil.
The Community Security Trust has recorded roughly 3,700 antisemitic incidents in the United Kingdom in 2025, one of the highest totals on record, as officials grapple with what they increasingly view as a sustained and evolving threat.
As reported by VINnews