A fire tore through three floors of a house in Hackney, East London, could have been an antisemitic hate crime.
A man in his 60s was arrested near the scene in Hackney after he made threatening and ‘allegedly antisemitic’ comments, Metropolitan Police said.
Eight fire trucks and about 60 firefighters helped fight the fire, which started yesterday around midday.
Det Ch Supt James Conway said: ‘Certainly this will be very worrying news for our Jewish communities in Hackney and beyond, and I and my officers will be working with partners including the Community Safety Trust and the Shomrim to address their questions and hear their views.
‘While the investigation will continue to explore the motivation for this offence, we believe at this stage that this was centered on a local housing issue.
‘We have no indication, at this very early stage, that the motivation was connected with any specific local or global events.’
Met Police are investigating.
Hate crimes against both Muslim and Jewish communities have risen drastically since the war started in Israel.
In December, two Jewish women were targeted by muggers minutes before a young Orthodox woman was ‘beaten unconscious’ in a suspected hate crime.
Sickening footage showed the 20-year-old victim being knocked to the ground and kicked while lying defenseless on Rostrevor Avenue in Haringey, north London, last Thursday.
And a man was arrested in November over a series of Islamophobic incidents at mosques and businesses across west London and the Palestinian Mission in Hammersmith.
Check back shortly for further updates.
Or you can submit your videos and pictures here.
news page.
