Synagogues, schools and other Jewish community centers in the United Kingdom have begun hiring former British soldiers for protection, a Sunday report said, amid a wave of antisemitic violence in the UK that London’s top police officer called an “epidemic.”
According to The Sunday Times, ex-Royal Marines and Parachute Regiment veterans have been recruited by Jewish organizations in the UK, notably the Community Security Trust (CST), a nonprofit that advises Britain’s estimated 280,000 Jews on security matters.
The CST has been hiring the former soldiers through a private contractor, which recruits personnel from “elite fighting units in the Royal Navy and army,” the report said.
The organization has also provided training to over 2,000 volunteers to help secure Jewish sites, the report said, including in Krav Maga, the Israeli-developed self-defense martial art.
The report comes days after police charged 45-year-old Essa Suleiman with attempted murder following an antisemitic terror attack during which two Jewish men were stabbed on Wednesday. Suleiman is also accused of the attempted murder of an acquaintance earlier in the day.
Get The Times of Israel’s Daily Edition
by email and never miss our top stories
By signing up, you agree to the terms
According to the Times, the hiring of the UK veterans for Jewish community security, which it said costs “tens of thousands of pounds,” highlights the “acute level of concern” felt among Britain’s Jews.
A police officer talks with two boys where two people were stabbed, in Golders Green neighborhood, that has a large Jewish community, in London, April 29, 2026. (Lucy North/PA via AP)
While the CST operates with a 28 million pound ($38 million) annual Home Office grant to give to Jewish community sites for security hiring, many institutions have dipped into their own funds to hire additional personnel, the report said.
The former soldiers began protecting Jewish sites in the aftermath of the Manchester synagogue attack last October, the report said, during which a terrorist drove his car into people gathered outside the congregation during Yom Kippur services and stabbed one person to death. Another person died during the attack after being inadvertently shot by police.
The private security officers now patrol Jewish areas of London and Manchester, the Times said.
Issuing comment for the report on the hiring of Royal Army veterans and other former troops for security, the CST said it “deploys a range of capabilities as part of our operations protecting the Jewish community.”
“This includes high level specialist security operatives working alongside other guarding companies and CST volunteers. This reflects the level of threat currently faced by the Jewish community in this country.”
Police officers patrol at a cordon near Kenton United Synagogue in Harrow, a suburb of London, April 19, 2026. (Jamie Lashmar/PA via AP)
In the wake of Wednesday’s attack, Britain raised its national terrorism threat level to “severe,” signaling that a terrorist attack is considered highly likely.
Mark Rowley, head of London’s Metropolitan Police, said Sunday that British Jews are facing their greatest-ever threat, which he called an “epidemic” of antisemitism.
Last week’s stabbing attack took place just 300 yards from the site of an arson attack targeting four ambulances owned by Jewish charity Hatzola, which were parked outside a synagogue.
That incident was the first in a spate of arson attacks on Jewish-linked sites, which UK police say have been part of a pattern of incidents perpetrated by “thugs for hire” possibly recruited by Iran-linked terror groups.
The wreckage of burnt ambulances is seen in a car park at Golders Green in London, March 23, 2026, after an arson attack targeting the vehicles, which were run by a Jewish charity. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)
The newly founded Islamist group Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (HAYI), or Movement of the Companions of the Right Hand of Islam, which has links to Iran, has claimed responsibility for many of the recent attacks in London, as well as others across Europe on American, Israeli and Jewish targets, according to SITE Intelligence Group.
Monitoring groups have reported an upsurge in antisemitic incidents in Britain, particularly since the start of the Gaza war, which was sparked by Hamas’s terror onslaught in Israel on October 7, 2023.
The CST recorded 3,700 instances of anti-Jewish hate across the UK last year, a four percent rise over 2024, but down when compared to 2023.
Which gorgeous bird do you prefer?
THIS MONTH ONLY: Join our reader support group for as little as $6/month and receive an exclusive tote bag featuring one of Israel’s native birds.
Choose between the Duchifat (orange), Israel’s national bird, or the Shaldag (blue), a beloved symbol of the Israeli landscape.
As a member of the Times of Israel Community, you’ll also enjoy:
An ad-free experience of our site and podcasts.
Exclusive access to award-winning films via DocuNation.
Weekly letters from founding editor David Horovitz.
Join ToI Community & claim my bag
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You appreciate our wartime journalism
You clearly find our careful reporting of the Iran war valuable, at a time when facts are often distorted and news coverage often lacks context.
Your support is essential to continue our work. We want to continue delivering the professional journalism you value, even as the demands on our newsroom have grown dramatically during this ongoing conflict.
So today, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. For as little as $6 a month you’ll become our partners while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this