British Prime Minister Keir Starmer vowed on Thursday to deal with “the root causes of extremism and antisemitism” after the stabbing of two Jewish men in the heavily Jewish London neighborhood of Golders Green.

Starmer said in a video statement that the fight against antisemitism is an issue for “everyone in this country,” and vowed to stand with the Jewish community after the attack, which authorities have formally declared a terrorist incident.

But as he visited Golders Green on Thursday, protesters gathered to criticize what they said was longstanding government inaction. They booed and chanted “Keir Starmer, Jew Harmer” as he arrived in the neighborhood.

Following the attack, the government announced that it would provide an extra £25 million ($33.65 million) to increase security for the Jewish community.

Attacks on British Jews are the country’s “biggest national security emergency” in almost a decade, the government’s adviser on terrorism, Jonathan Hall KC, told the BBC.

Starmer said in a meeting on Wednesday with criminal justice agencies that authorities must respond to the attack in a “swift, agile and visible way” to Wednesday’s attack in Golders Green.

“A number of people have been arrested, a number of them go through the criminal justice system, and it’s really important that we are able collectively to demonstrate that the response will be swift and visible,” he said.

“There’s no getting away from the fact that this was not a one-off,” he added. “This has been a series of attacks on our Jewish community, particularly in recent weeks, and there is a very deep sense of anxiety, of concern about security, about safety, about identity frankly.”

The assailant, a 45-year-old British citizen born in Somalia, was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder. Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said Thursday that the suspect has a history of serious violence and mental health issues, and was known to the government’s counter-radicalization Prevent program.

The suspect came to the UK “lawfully” when he was a child, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood told the BBC on Wednesday.

The newly formed terror group Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (HAYI) claimed responsibility for the attack. The group is believed to have links to Iran and has claimed credit for some of the recent antisemitic incidents in the UK and elsewhere in Europe.

Members of the city’s Jewish community expressed outrage over the attack, the latest in a series of antisemitic incidents that have continued since Hamas launched its war with Israel on October 7, 2023.

“Words of condemnation are no longer sufficient,” Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis wrote on X. “This must be a moment that demands meaningful action from every institution, every community, every leader, and every decent person in our country. This is a hatred that we must face down together.”

A spokesman for King Charles — currently on a state visit to the United States — shared his concern over the incident.

“His Majesty is being kept fully informed and is naturally deeply concerned, in particular about the impact for the Jewish community,” the spokesman said. “His thoughts and........

© The Times of Israel