London forms new police unit to protect Jewish community amid spate of antisemitic attacks

After spate of high-profile antisemitic attacks, London’s Metropolitan Police announces formation of new unit to offer “specialist protection.”

By World Israel News Staff

London’s Metropolitan Police announced a new 100-officer unit Wednesday to protect Jewish communities after a series of antisemitic attacks, including arson incidents and the stabbing of two Orthodox Jewish men in Golders Green.

The new “community protection team” will initially focus on Jewish areas of London and combine neighborhood policing with specialist protection and counterterrorism capabilities, police said.

The force said the unit would provide “a more visible, intelligence-led and coordinated presence focused on protecting Jewish communities across London.”

Police said the team would include locally based officers with ties to residents, schools, faith leaders and volunteers. The move follows calls from Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley for hundreds of additional officers to address what he described as a growing “pandemic” of antisemitism in Britain.

The announcement comes after several attacks on Jewish sites since late March. They include arson attacks, a firebombing at a synagogue and the stabbing of two Jewish men last week in an incident police are treating as terrorism.

Counterterrorism police are also investigating an arson attack Tuesday at a former synagogue in Whitechapel, east London. The gates and front lock were damaged, but no injuries were reported.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the attacks had left British Jews fearful for their safety.

“It is part of a pattern of rising antisemitism that has left our Jewish communities feeling frightened, angry and asking whether this country, their home, is safe for them,” Starmer said.

“These disgusting attacks are being made against British Jews. But, make no mistake, this crisis — it is a crisis for all of us,” he added.

The Community Security Trust, which monitors antisemitism in Britain, recorded 3,700 antisemitic incidents in 2025, up from 1,662 in 2022. The group said it recorded more than 200 incidents in every month of 2025 for the first time.

British authorities have also raised the national terror threat level from “substantial” to “severe,” meaning an attack is considered highly likely.

Police and government officials have said they are examining whether foreign actors, including Iran-linked groups, may be connected to some recent incidents.