‘We just sell bagels’: Jewish deli workers grilled about support for IDF

‘We are not normally approached by members of the public who want to know if we support the IDF. We are a Jewish deli selling bagels.’

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Several loiterers walked into two Jewish delis in a UK town and harassed workers about their support for Israel and the IDF, reports The Jewish Chronicle.

The two delis, called Fress Deli and Noshers located in Radlett in Hertfordshire were targeted by men who questioned staff about Israel and the IDF.

Both delis are kosher-style and serve traditional Jewish food such as bagels and smoked salmon.

Community Security Trust were called when the three men were seen walking up and down Watling Street in Radlett and attempted to conceal their faces partially with masks and hoods.

Isobel, a Fress employee, told JC about the incident and said, “We are not normally approached by members of the public who want to know if we support the IDF. We are a Jewish deli selling bagels.”

She continued, “They came in asking a lot of weird questions about if we support the IDF and Israel.”

“We just told them we sell bagels and cakes and pastries,” Isobel concluded.

Isobel said that the questions the men asked “made her uncomfortable” and she noticed they were walking up and down the street entering Jewish shops until a member of the public called CST.

The store manager of Fress said, “I only saw one man hanging around outside. He had a face mask on- took it off when he came into shop, to ask me about lentil soup mix.”

The man then asked the manager if Fress was a Jewish shop.

When the manager informed him Fress was a deli, the man immediately asked if he supported the IDF.

When the manager refused to answer, the man left and joined two others outside the store.

A spokesman of the CST told The Jewish Chronicle, “This is a disturbing and completely unjustifiable example of anti-Jewish harassment ostensibly in the name of anti-Israel activism.”

The spokesman added, “We will be looking to increase security in the area in the coming days to reassure the Jewish community.”