U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer will chair a meeting of the government’s emergency COBRA committee Wednesday afternoon.
The attack has reignited the debate about the safety of Jews on Britain’s streets. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a strongly worded statement on Wednesday afternoon calling for action on antisemitism in Britain.
“Weakness gaslights one antisemitic attack after another in London. Words are not enough to confront this scourge,” he posted on X.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood insisted ministers do take the safety of the Jewish community “very seriously,” adding: “We have to tackle the root causes of antisemitism that is leading to this environment in which our Jewish community is coming under attack.”
Earlier Wednesday, Shomrim, the Jewish neighborhood watch group, said it detained a man running down the north London high street with a knife and “attempting to stab Jewish members of the public,” before police arrived and deployed a taser.
The victims were treated by Hatzola, a Jewish voluntary ambulance service, the group said in a post on X.
Sadiq Khan, London’s mayor, confirmed there had been an arrest following the “appalling attack,” and said the Met have now stepped up “high visibility” patrols in the area.