{"id":30070,"date":"2026-05-06T14:21:15","date_gmt":"2026-05-06T14:21:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/30070\/"},"modified":"2026-05-06T14:21:15","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T14:21:15","slug":"london-jews-celebrate-lag-bomer-amid-fear-and-uncertainty-over-spate-of-attacks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/30070\/","title":{"rendered":"London Jews celebrate Lag B’Omer amid fear and uncertainty over spate of attacks"},"content":{"rendered":"

LONDON \u2014 Thousands of British Jews gathered in north London on Tuesday to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Lag B\u2019Omer, after weeks of heightened tension and fear following a string of antisemitic attacks.<\/p>\n

At one event in the area, men in ultra-Orthodox Jewish dress packed into a school playground to dance and pray together around bonfires as hundreds of women and children watched from nearby streets and some crowded onto the balconies of residential buildings.<\/p>\n

The annual festival is traditionally celebrated as a joyful pause in a solemn period of the Jewish calendar. Bright yellow high-visibility police<\/a> vests stood out in sharp contrast to the traditional black coats and hats of those taking part.<\/p>\n

Tuesday\u2019s festival took place days after two Jewish men were stabbed in the street in Golders Green \u2014 the most violent incident this year in a series of attacks that have put the security of Britain\u2019s 290,000 Jews into the spotlight.<\/p>\n

Community leader Levi Shapiro said the event was slightly different this year, referring to antisemitic incidents across the area.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThere will be that extra element of prayers, a moment of unity and reflection for the Jewish community, and of course, a community that stays strong together in the most challenging times,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

After recent fires and stabbings in Golders Green, London, tonight\u2019s fire was in celebration of the festival of Lag B\u2019 Omer. pic.twitter.com\/hSQ3RhDXNG<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 James J. Marlow (@James_J_Marlow) May 4, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Tuesday acknowledged the magnitude of the issue currently facing Jews in his capital city, saying at an emergency meeting<\/a> on antisemitism in the UK that the \u201cpattern of rising antisemitism that has left our Jewish communities feeling frightened, angry, and asking whether this country, their home, is safe for them.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

The attacks in Britain have piled pressure on the governing Labour Party, particularly ahead of local elections on May 7. The leader of the opposition Conservative Party has called antisemitism a \u201cnational emergency.\u201d<\/p>\n

The head of London\u2019s Metropolitan Police went even further, saying Sunday that British Jews are facing their greatest-ever threat, which he called an \u201cepidemic\u201d of antisemitism.<\/p>\n

Moments after Starmer\u2019s speech, counter-terrorism police on Tuesday confirmed<\/a> they had launched an investigation into an arson attack at a former synagogue in east London, the latest in a series of arson attacks on diaspora Jewish targets amid the war with Iran, some of which authorities are examining for possible Iranian links.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a>
\n\t\tA man walks past a road blocked by police after two Jewish men were stabbed in Golders Green neighborhood of London, April 29, 2026. (AP\/Kin Cheung)<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

The UK government has since raised the national terrorism threat level to \u201csevere\u201d and announced an additional 25 million pounds ($34 million) in funding to bolster protection of the country\u2019s estimated 290,000-strong Jewish community.<\/p>\n

Monitoring groups have reported an upsurge in antisemitic incidents in Britain, particularly since the start of the Gaza war, which was sparked by Hamas\u2019s terror onslaught in Israel on October 7, 2023.<\/p>\n

The Community Security Trust, a nonprofit providing security protection to British Jews, 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.<\/p>\n


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