Golders Green attack in London has left Britain’s Jewish community ‘scared’, says UK PM | BBC News

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer delivered a statement following a daylight stabbing attack on two Jewish men in Golders Green, London. He described the attack as part of a disturbing series of antisemitic incidents, also referencing an arson attack in Hendon, an attack on the Jewish ambulance service Hatzola, the firebombing of Kenton United Synagogue, and the Heaton Park attack in Manchester where two Jewish men were killed in what he called a 'vile Islamist attack.' Starmer said the Jewish community is now living in a state of fear — afraid to attend synagogue, go to university, send their children to school, or even use the NHS while identifying as Jewish.

Starmer outlined a concrete package of government measures in response, including: strengthening visible police presence in Jewish communities, increasing investment in Jewish security services, introducing stronger powers to shut down charities promoting antisemitic extremism, barring hate preachers from entering the country and from campuses, speeding up sentencing for antisemitic attacks, and fast-tracking legislation to counter threats from malign state actors such as Iran. He stated that individuals using the phrase 'globalize the intifada' at protests should be prosecuted, calling it 'extreme racism.'

Starmer made a notable rhetorical shift by declining to use the phrase 'this is not Britain,' arguing instead that British values are not inherited but must be actively earned each day. He called on all decent people in Britain to open their eyes to Jewish suffering and to fight antisemitism as a societal — not just a security — challenge.

During a Q&A, Starmer was pressed on whether he owed the Jewish community an apology and whether the government had done enough. He cited emergency COBRA meetings, coordination with criminal justice agencies, and enhanced security funding as immediate responses. He was also questioned about the suspect having previously been referred to the government's Prevent counter-extremism program, and acknowledged lessons may need to be learned while noting the investigation was still at an early stage.

BBC political analysts noted that Starmer faced dual pressure: to make a clear rhetorical statement naming the threat, and to announce concrete action. They observed that while some measures — like legislation targeting malign state actors — were already in progress before the attack, others such as enhanced police presence and stricter protest regulations represented new or accelerated commitments.