Met Police data show antisemitic hate crime increased by 653% across the borough following the 7th October terror attack in Israel, reports James Cracknell

A protest against antisemitism in London — credit Community Security Trust

New Metropolitan Police figures show there’s been a sharp rise in antisemitism across Barnet borough since the Hamas terror attack on Israel.

For the whole month of October 2023, there were 183 hate crimes recorded in Barnet, of which 113 were antisemitic – accounting for 61% of the total.

In September, before the Hamas terror attack, there were 84 hate crimes recorded, of which 15 were antisemitic (18% of the total). It means that in just a single month hate crime across Barnet rose by 117%, while antisemitic hate crime increased by 653% – more than a seven-fold jump.

The Community Security Trust (CST), a charity that protects British Jews from antisemitism and related threats, has described the hate crime figures in Barnet as “completely unacceptable”.

Specific incidents have included antisemitic graffiti being written on a bridge in Golders Green, a kosher restaurant being vandalised, also in Golders Green, and abuse being hurled at two Jewish men in Edgware – seemingly as part of a spate of attacks in the area

A CST spokesperson said: “Barnet has the largest Jewish community in the country and as a result, it is often a magnet for antisemitic hate crime.

“Sadly, it is no surprise that the alarming national increase in anti-Jewish hate crimes since the Hamas terror attack on 7th October has been reflected in these figures, and it is completely unacceptable.

“Barnet’s Jewish community is an integral part of this diverse borough and deserves to go about its way of life free from hatred and bigotry.”

In October, shortly after the Hamas attacks, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak joined Chipping Barnet MP Theresa Villiers in a visit to a local Jewish school in a show of solidarity with the community.

Villiers later said: “The recent outbreak of antisemitic incidents is shocking and unacceptable and the home secretary is providing additional funding to support the work of the police and the Community Security Trust in safeguarding the Jewish community.”

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