Arson Attacks on Synagogues: UK Vows to Protect Jewish Community

0:00It's April 19th. This is Europe News Today, AI-powered stories shaping Europe. I'm Cory with the story. Another attempted arson hit a synagogue in northwest London. This time a Kenton United synagogue and hero around midnight on Sunday. Counter-terror police are now leading the investigation after someone threw a bottle with accelerant through a window, causing minor smoke damage. Inside, no one got hurt and is part of a string of similar attacks on Jewish sites over the past month. Earlier this week, two people in dark clothes and balaclavas tried the same at Finchley Reformed synagogue, leaving unlit bottles behind. Then on Friday night in Hendon, a man lit bottles of fluid near a former Jewish community building, but fled when they didn't fully catch. Back on March 23rd, four Jewish ambulances got torched in Golders Green. Prime Minister Sir Kierstarmer called it appalling and abhorrent, stressing that attacks on the Jewish community are attacks on all of Britain.

1:00Chief rabbis Sir Ephraim Mervis labeled it a cowardly act in a growing campaign of violence, warning we can't wait for lives to be lost before acting. Police ramped up deterrence patrols, deployed armed units and fire dogs, and set up a big cordon at the scene. They've got extra stop and search powers in the area, more uniformed in plain clothes officers on the streets through the weekend, and counter-terror. Teams linking these due to similar methods and online claims. Community groups like the Community Security Trust and Campaign Against Anti-Semitism are supporting those hit and praising the quick police response. With this momentum building, authorities vow to hunt down those responsible and keep our community safe, no letting hate win.