The terror threat level in Britain has been raised from ‘very’ to ‘severe’ following an attack on two Jewish men in the Golders Green area of north London on Wednesday.
British Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said, “Today, the national threat level has been raised to ‘severe’, meaning a terrorist attack is extremely likely.” in a statement On Thursday.
“I know this will be a matter of concern for many people, especially our Jewish community, who have suffered so much,” she said.
The increase in threat is not just a result of the Golders Green attack, he said. Joint Terrorism Analysis Center, an intelligence body that determines the national terrorism threat level in a country.
The level of terrorist threat in the UK has been increasing for some time, driven by the “growth of”.“The widespread Islamist and extreme right terrorist threat from individuals and small groups based in the UK,” the center said.
The UK uses five levels to classify threat levels and “severe” is the second highest level of threat.
Britain last faced such levels in 2021, following the Liverpool Women’s Hospital bombing and the assassination of MP David Ames. The threat level was lowered to very low in February 2022, meaning an attack is likely.
The attack has raised concerns in Britain’s Jewish community
The attack, which seriously injured two Jewish men, aged 34 and 76, has been declared a terrorist incident and a 45-year-old man is in police custody. The condition of both the injured people is stable.
The attack took place in Golders Green, which is home to a large Jewish community. The attack is the latest in a series of incidents targeting Jewish services and sites in recent months.
Keir Starmer vows action to ‘end this hate’
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who was at Golders Green earlier on Thursday, said his government would “do everything in its power to end this hatred.”
Starmer’s government has previously said the country is facing an anti-Semitism emergency and has promised to step up measures to tackle the threat.
The government will invest £25 million (€28 million; $33 million) in increased police patrols and security to keep Jewish communities safe and will enact a law to give authorities stronger powers to target state-sponsored proxy groups.
But Starmer was also met by a group of protesters holding signs reading “Keir Starmer, Jew harmer” as they expressed their anger at the government for not taking action to protect Jews from rising anti-Semitic violence in the country.
Edited by: Rana Taha