Two people were stabbed on Wednesday in the north London area of Golders Green, a center of Jewish life in Britain, according to a Jewish charity that works in the area.
The attack, on Golders Green Road, left at least two people injured before the man was detained by members of Shomrim, the volunteer-run Jewish charity that runs civilian security patrols in the area, according to the charity. The Metropolitan Police, London’s main police force, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The attack comes at a time of heightened anxiety for Jewish communities across Europe, after several antisemitic attacks. In October, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, a man who the police said had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State attacked a synagogue in Manchester, in northern England, leading to the deaths of two people.
The Golders Green neighborhood was also the site of an arson attack in March, and counterterrorism police have been involved in that investigation.
Security had already been stepped up across the Jewish community in London, with additional police officers, private security and volunteer groups all involved in aiming to ensure the residents’ safety.
“One male was seen running along Golders Green Road armed with a knife and attempting to stab Jewish members of the public. Shomrim responded immediately and detained the suspect,” the charity said in a statement posted on social media. “Police attended and deployed a taser.”
The charity said the man had been arrested, and two people who had been stabbed were being treated by Hatzola, a medical charity in the area. Hatzola was targeted with an arson attack in the same neighborhood last month that left a million pounds, or roughly $1.35 million, in damages. Four young men, including one 17-year-old, have been charged with arson in that case.
The Community Security Trust, a British charity that tracks antisemitism and coordinates security measures at Jewish institutions, confirmed in a statement posted to X that there had been a knife attack in Golders Green, but did not say the number of people injured. The organization thanked the Metropolitan Police for their swift response.
Speaking in Parliament a short time later, after another lawmaker mentioned the stabbing, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that the situation was “deeply concerning to everyone in this house.”
“There is now a police investigation and I think we all need to do everything we can to support that investigation,” he said, “and be absolutely clear in our determination to deal with any of these offenses, the like of which we’ve seen too much recently.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
