UK’s Starmer to meet with community leaders on antisemitism after attacks |
LONDON (Reuters) — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will convene leaders from across society on Tuesday to tackle antisemitism in the wake of the stabbing of two Jewish men and a string of other assaults, his office said.
The attacks have left communities fearing for their safety and piled pressure on the governing Labour Party, particularly ahead of local elections on May 7. The leader of the opposition Conservative Party has called antisemitism a “national emergency.”
The government has since raised the national terrorism threat level to “severe” and announced an additional 25 million pounds ($34 million) in funding to bolster protection of the country’s estimated 290,000-strong Jewish community.
Starmer said in a statement on Monday that last Wednesday’s stabbings in the predominantly Jewish neighborhood of Golders Green were part of a pattern of rising antisemitism that has left the country’s Jewish communities feeling frightened and angry.
“Make no mistake, this crisis – it is a crisis for all of us. It is a test of our values … it is not enough to simply say we stand with Jewish communities. We must show it,” he added.
The victims of stabbings, Moshe Shine, 76, and Shilome Rand, 34, were both seriously injured.
Jewish community members........