Counterterror police are looking into whether a series of arson attacks against Jewish sites in north London have been carried out by Iranian proxies, the Metropolitan Police said.
Kenton United Synagogue in Harrow, northwest London, was the target of an arson attack on Saturday night, the latest in a spate of incidents targeting Jewish properties.
The Community Security Trust said the building sustained minor smoke damage to an internal room, but there were no injuries or significant structural damage.
Officers on “deterrence and reassurance patrols” in the wake of the previous incidents spotted damage to a window of the building at around midnight.
A “bottle with some sort of accelerant had been thrown through the window”, and smoke was seen inside a room, a police spokesperson said.
“The incident is being treated as arson and an investigation is underway led by Counter Terrorism Policing London, supported by local officers,” it added.
Saturday night’s arson attack came just 24 hours after a similar incident outside a former charity building in Hendon, and follows a series of attempted attacks at Jewish sites in north London in the past month.
Vicki Evans, deputy assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, said the incidents of arson have been “similar in nature”, targeting Israeli and Jewish premises within London.
She said at the scene on Sunday: “Most have been claimed online by a group, Ashab al-Yamin, the Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Right. The same group, in recent months have claimed attacks across Europe, also happening at similar premises, such as Jewish and Israeli premises.
“I want to be clear, irrespective of the motivation of this group, to those who are facilitating this activity on their behalf and those who are committing the acts, we will not tolerate activity that seeks to intimidate and harm our communities. You will not succeed in creating division and hate.
“As the conflict in the Middle East continues to evolve, counterterrorism policing and our partners remain alive to the threat of Iranian hostile activity in the UK.
“We are aware of public reporting that suggests this group may have links to Iran – as you would expect, we will continue to explore that question as our investigation evolves.”
Ms Evans continued: “I’ve spoken previously about the Iranian regime’s use of criminal proxies, and we’re considering whether this tactic is being used here in London.”
“This is recruiting violence as a service, and the people who conduct that violence often have little or no allegiance to the cause and are taking quick cash for their crimes.”
The prime minister has been urged to decry what the president of the charity behind the synagogue has described as “an epidemic of anti-Jewish hate” after the series of incidents.
Saul Taylor, president of the United Synagogue, said: “The prime minister should declare publicly what the Jewish community has known for some time: this is an epidemic of anti-Jewish hate.”
Sir Keir Starmer described the incidents as “abhorrent”, writing on social media: “I am appalled by recent attempted antisemitic arson attacks in north London.
“This is abhorrent and it will not be tolerated. Attacks on our Jewish community are attacks on Britain. We are increasing visible policing, and those responsible will be found and brought to justice. We will not rest in the pursuit of perpetrators.”
About the incident in Harrow, a spokesperson for the Community Security Trust said: “We are aware of another attempted arson, this time targeting a synagogue in north London, following similar recent incidents targeting the Jewish community in Finchley, Golders Green and Hendon.
“We want to thank the Met Police and London Fire Brigade for responding quickly and for all they are doing to protect the Jewish community during this unprecedented period.
“We are supporting the affected location and are working closely with the police as they investigate and seek to identify those responsible.”
Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis called it “a cowardly arson attack” and said that “a sustained campaign of violence and intimidation against the Jewish community of the UK is gathering momentum”.
His statement shared on X, formerly Twitter, said: “It follows the attack in Finchley on Wednesday and the attempted attack on what was the Jewish Futures building in Hendon on Friday night, making three Jewish sites attacked in London in less than a week.”
He added: “This sustained attack on our community’s ability to worship and live in safety is an attack on the values that bind us all together.
“Thank God, no lives have been lost, but we cannot, and must not, wait for that to change before we understand just how dangerous this moment is for all of our society.”
The incident in Harrow came hours after the Metropolitan Police deployed extra resources to parts of northwest London as it treated an attempted arson on Friday night as an antisemitic hate crime.
On Friday evening, a man was seen approaching a row of shops in Hendon carrying a plastic bag later found to contain three bottles of fluid, placing it down, before lighting the items inside.
The man fled the scene when they failed to fully ignite. The shopfront sustained minor damage, and no injuries were reported.
A police cordon was in place around a building, said to be formerly used by the Jewish community, on Saturday afternoon.
Counter Terrorism Policing London is leading the investigation into the incident in Hendon, as well as probes into other attacks because of the “similar circumstances and online claims of responsibility”, the Met said.
On Wednesday, bottles, one thought to contain petrol, were placed near Finchley Reform Synagogue in Fallow Court Avenue, Finchley.
Officers said two people, who were wearing dark clothing and balaclavas, were seen approaching the synagogue just after midnight.
Neither of the bottles were ignited and the people fled the scene, the force added, with no damage or injuries reported.
This came after four Jewish community ambulances were torched in Golders Green in the early hours of 23 March.
