Met Police reports ‘significant increase in hate crime’ amid Israel-Hamas war
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Antisemitic offences in London have increased by over 1,000% this month compared to last year, police have said.
And since the Hamas attack on Israel, Tell Mama (Measuring Anti-Muslim Attacks) has recorded a six-fold increase in reports compared to the same period last year.
The Metropolitan Police said there had been “a significant increase in hate crime across London” and that officers had made 21 arrests for hate crime offences, amid the Israel-Hamas war.
These arrests included a man detained on suspicion of defacing posters of missing Israelis in Camden and another man in relation to 10 incidents of Islamophobic graffiti on bus stops in New Malden and Raynes Park.
The Metropolitan Police said there had been 218 antisemitic offences between October 1 and 18, compared to 15 in the same period last year – an increase of 1,353%.
They added that Islamophobia offences during the same period had increased from 42 last year, to 101 this year – an increase of 140%.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan said police would “not stand by” if hate crimes took place and promised that officers would “intervene swiftly”.
Mr Adelekan said that over 1,000 officers would be deployed to police a pro-Palestinian demonstration in London on Saturday, adding that speeches would take place on a stage away from the Cenotaph after “concerns last week” about its location.
He added that police had been deployed to 445 schools and 1,930 places of worship “to provide reassurance”.
Commander Dominic Murphy, from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command, said that police remained conscious that events overseas could “inspire events in the UK”.
Meanwhile, a charity which aims to protect British Jews from antisemitism and related threats said it has recorded at least 533 incidents across the UK since the Hamas attacks on Israel.
The Community Security Trust (CST) said this is the highest ever total reported across a 14-day period.
The number, covering October 7-20 inclusive, is provisional and is likely to rise as delayed reports come through and incidents are verified, the charity added.
The CST said it had recorded 71 antisemitic incidents over the same 14 days in 2022, meaning the number is more than seven times higher for the same period this year.
A Tell Mama spokesman said that between October 7 and October 19, it had received 291 reports of anti-Muslim hate including a two-fold increase in London alone.
The spokesman said: “Consistent with our previous bulletins, we continue to see how racist, dehumanising and threatening behaviours target Arab, Palestinian and Muslim communities offline and online.
“Alarmingly, we’ve had further cases of death threats made, including towards visible Muslim women and staff at a Palestinian restaurant.
“Tell Mama is in contact with the owner and will continue to provide them with assistance. We will also be liaising further with the Met Police.”
