Extra police to protect Jewish communities as Met pledges 100 more officers after Golders Green attacks
The team will consist of officers who are "locally based, understand their communities, and have strong relationships with residents, schools, faith leaders and volunteers"
A team of 100 extra community protection police officers will be deployed to help safeguard the Jewish community, the Met Police has announced.
Listen to this article
The new team will be "primarily focused on protecting the Jewish community, which faces some of the highest levels of hate crime alongside significant terrorist and hostile state threats".
It follows a series of arson attacks at Jewish sites in London, as well as a double stabbing in Golders Green that is being treated as an act of terrorism.
It comes despite Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley previously stating 300 extra police officers were needed across London as he warned of a growing "pandemic" of antisemitism in the UK.
Read more: Prosecutors told to fast-track hate crime charges in response to tidal wave of anti-Semitism
Read more: Armed police response teams to keep Jewish people safe in London, Met chief reveals
The new team will initially be made up of 100 extra officers which would involve "officers who are locally based, understand their communities, and have strong relationships with residents, schools, faith leaders and volunteers".
The announcement comes as officers investigated a suspected arson attack at a former synagogue on Tuesday morning, and made a number of arrests over the weekend in connection with racially and religiously aggravated offences.
These included the arrest of a 57‑year‑old man on Friday on suspicion of causing fear or provocation of violence following reports he threatened a Jewish man while using racially offensive language.
On Saturday, a 35‑year‑old man was arrested on suspicion of aggravated criminal damage after rocks were thrown at an ambulance belonging to the Jewish community while it was transporting a patient in Edgware.
Further arrests were also made on the same day for racially aggravated harassment, criminal damage and public order offences in Brent and Croydon.
A spokesperson for the force said: "British Jews now appear on the hate lists of every major extremist movement: extreme right‑wing groups, Islamist terrorists, elements of the extreme left and hostile state actors.
"It is a deeply concerning convergence, and Jewish communities are living with the consequences of that risk daily.
"This focus does not mean the Metropolitan Police is deprioritising other communities. Hate crime in all its forms – including ongoing efforts to tackle racism, anti‑Muslim hate crime, homophobia and other forms of hatred in the capital – remains a core policing priority."
Sir Mark said the creation of the new team was an "important step in strengthening our response to the sustained threats Jewish communities are facing".
The Met said the government’s announcement last week of £25 million in one‑off funding to support protective policing, including the decision to ringfence £18 million specifically for the Met was "extremely needed and has already made a difference".
The Home Office said a further £2 million had been allocated to the National Police Chiefs’ Council and is “available to police forces nationally to protect communities across England and Wales".
It added that a further £4 million will be made available through the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant, administered by the Community Security Trust, which will include funding for Jewish volunteer group Shomrim, which provides support to local communities via neighbourhood patrols.
A further £1 million will also be invested into the expansion of Project Servator, which puts “specialist and plain-clothes officers in the community who are trained to spot suspicious activity and identify individuals preparing to commit serious crimes”.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: "Last week’s abhorrent, antisemitic attack was a vile act of terrorism.
"My thoughts remain with the victims, and with the whole Jewish community at a time of deep disquiet and fear.
"The Government has announced a significant increase in investment to protect our Jewish communities, with record funding for policing and security at synagogues, schools and community centres.
"We will do everything in our power to rid society of the evil of antisemitism."