British counter-terrorism police are investigating an arson attack on a shop in a London area with a large Jewish population, officials said Saturday.
The incident occurred late on Friday night in Hendon, located in the north-west of the British capital.
“A man was seen approaching the row of shops with a plastic bag, which was later found to contain three bottles of liquid,” police said in a statement.
“He placed the bag next to the building and burned the contents of the bag. The bottles failed to burn completely and the man fled the scene.”
Anti-Semitic incidents create fear
Officials did not specify the business targeted but said it caused minor damage. However, no one was injured in the attack.
Several similar incidents have been seen in Britain in recent weeks.
There was a separate arson attack on a synagogue in nearby Finchley on Wednesday.
In late March, four Jewish community ambulances were set on fire in Golders Green, north London.
According to SITE Intelligence Group, Harakat Ashab al-Yameen al-Islamiyya (HAYI), a little-known group with links to Iran, claimed responsibility for the attacks on the synagogue and ambulance. The group had previously claimed similar attacks in Belgium and the Netherlands.
What did the police say about the investigation?
Officials said they were keeping an open mind about the motive behind the latest attack and were not treating it as a terrorist incident.
But he also said counter-terrorism officials were leading the investigation because of similarities with earlier attacks, even though they were not formally linking the latest to others at this stage.
Detective Chief Superintendent Luke Williams, who leads policing in the area, said: “I know this latest incident will cause increased fear in the community.”
He said police patrolling, including armed officers, would be increased.
Edited by: Wesley Dockery