UK charges man over stabbing of two Jewish men in London

LONDON: British police have charged a 45-year-old man with two counts of attempted murder after two Jewish men were stabbed in Golders Green in north London in what officers have described as a suspected terrorist incident.

Police said Essa Suleiman was charged in connection with Wednesday’s attack, in which a 34-year-old man and a 76-year-old man were wounded and taken to hospital. He also faces one count of possession of a bladed article in a public place.

According to police, Suleiman, a British national born in Somalia, has also been charged with attempted murder over a separate incident that took place earlier the same day in south London. He has been remanded in custody and was due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court later on Friday.

Police said the 34-year-old victim has since been discharged from hospital, while the 76-year-old remains in a stable condition.

Threat level raised after attack

Following the stabbings, officials raised the national terrorism threat level to its second-highest setting, indicating that a terrorist attack is considered highly likely within the next six months.

The attack came after a series of incidents targeting Jewish premises in the same part of north London, an area with a large Jewish population. The developments prompted British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to pledge stronger measures to protect Jewish people.

The incidents have also led to wider calls for greater protection for Britain’s Jewish community, which numbers about 290,000. Pro-Palestinian marches planned in the coming period could now face additional restrictions.

Government and police response

Interior minister Shabana Mahmood said Britain had been facing a growing terrorist threat for some time and said the decision to raise the threat level was not solely because of the stabbing incident.

There are also increasing security concerns linked to foreign states. The government said such activity had contributed to violence, including attacks against the Jewish community, where synagogues and Jewish ambulances have been targeted in arson incidents, some of which have been claimed by Iran on social media.

Some commentators examining the rise in antisemitic incidents in Britain say the pro-Palestinian marches that have become common since the October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, which triggered the Gaza war, have fostered hostility and become a focus for antisemitism.

Police said on Friday they would review pro-Palestinian protests scheduled in London in the coming weeks to determine whether further restrictions were needed. "We'll do everything we can do to maximise the sense of safety in London," Metropolitan Police chief Mark Rowley told the BBC.

Police do not have the authority to ban protests outright, but they can place restrictions on where and how they take place.