British authorities are investigating alleged Iranian connections to the arson attack against Jewish ambulances in London.
The terrorist group Harakat Ashab al Yamin al Islamia has taken credit for torching the four emergency vehicles that were set ablaze Monday morning outside Machzike Hadath synagogue in Golders Greens, a London suburb.
“While this has not been declared a terrorist incident at this stage, the investigation is now being led by counter-terrorism policing with all the specialist expertise they bring and all lines of inquiry remain open,” Detective Chief Superintendent Luke Williams told the public later on Monday.
Three hooded figures were caught on camera igniting the ambulances, but no suspects have been identified.
Individuals asserting allegiance with Harakat Ashab al Yamin al Islamia released a video statement following the attack, claiming they targeted the synagogue because it has “become one of the main bastions of support for Israel in Britain.”
The group, whose name roughly translates to “The Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Righteous,” has claimed responsibility for multiple other attacks against Jewish communities across Europe in recent weeks. The first attack linked to the group was on March 9, when an improvised explosive was left outside a Belgian synagogue.
Williams said Metropolitan Police are “aware of an online claim from a group taking responsibility for this attack” and that “establishing the authenticity and accuracy of this claim will be a priority for the investigation team.”
The imagery used by Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia bears a striking similarity to branding used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and several of its proxy terrorist cells. Videos attributed to the group have also reportedly been shared on Telegram channels linked to Hezbollah and the Guard.
No definitive tie to Iran has been established, but Jewish leaders and opposition parties are pushing the incident as a black mark against a Labour-led government that has dragged its heels in sanctioning the Guard as a terrorist organization.
Earlier this month, an Iranian national and a British-Iranian dual citizen were arrested in London under charges of spying on the local Jewish community on behalf of Iran.
That incident was cited on Monday when Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper summoned Iran’s ambassador to the United Kingdom for a meeting after accusing the Islamic Republic of “reckless and destabilizing actions” both in Britain and abroad.
“The summons follows the recent charging of two individuals, one Iranian national and one British-Iranian dual national, under the National Security Act, on suspicion of providing assistance to a foreign intelligence service,” a foreign ministry spokesperson said. “National security remains our top priority, and we take threats posed by Iran and those who do its bidding extremely seriously.”
The most recent arson incident may prove politically dangerous for Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his allies, who last week positioned themselves against parties warning of Islamic radicalization in the United Kingdom.
Tensions began following a mass demonstration of public prayer in Trafalgar Square to mark the end of Ramadan. The event, attended by London Mayor Sadiq Khan, was organized by the Ramadan Tent Project and drew thousands of participants in the heart of the capital city.
Shadow justice minister Nick Timothy called the event an “act of domination” that was “straight out of the Islamist playbook.” He then penned an op-ed for the Telegraph in which he elaborated his opposition, writing that “domination of public spaces is, as students of Islamism know, fundamental to the modus operandi of radical Islam.”
Starmer criticized Tory leader Kemi Badenoch for her fellow party member’s statements during Prime Minister’s Questions, saying she “should denounce [Timothy’s] comments and she should sack him.”
“I have never seen her [Badenoch’s] party call out anything other than the Muslim events. It is only when Muslims are praying,” Starmer said. “The only conclusion is that the Tory party has got a problem with Muslims.”
Badenoch has stood by her shadow justice minister, applauding him for “defending British values.”
Starmer’s position was complicated by revelations that the prime minister previously pulled out of an event hosted by Ramadan Tent Project in 2021 after deeming its CEO’s calls for boycotts against Israeli goods too “unsavory.”
Last Thursday, Badenoch called the prime minister’s reversal on Ramadan Tent Project the “mother of all hypocrisy,” saying he only pulled out of the event because he was “sucking up to British Jews” at the time and now “wants to suck up to a different community” with more political weight at the ballot box.
