london —
British counter-terrorism police have arrested eight people in connection with an investigation into suspected arson attacks in London, including a botched plot that may have targeted properties linked to the Jewish community, police said on Tuesday.
Seven of the arrests were made in the past 48 hours and are part of what police called an “active investigation into an alleged arson conspiracy.”
“At this time, it is believed that the intended target of this plot is a location associated with the Jewish community, although the specific target or location is unknown,” the Metropolitan Police said in a statement.
Arrests were also made in the British towns of Harpenden and Stevenage, near Birmingham, and in Ealing, a suburb west of London.
Police have announced that a total of eight people have been charged with arson-related offenses and 13 people are in police custody or on bail under investigation since the March 23rd arson attack in London’s Golders Green area, when several ambulances belonging to a Jewish volunteer rescue organization were set on fire outside a synagogue.
“Our message is clear: we will not tolerate this type of intimidation of our communities and we will hold those responsible to account,” said Vicki Evans, the force’s senior national co-ordinator for counter-terrorism.
“One of our key lines of inquiry is whether criminal agents, people who are paid to carry out crimes, are being used to commit any of these arsons,” Evans added.
This comes after Britain’s Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis warned on Sunday that “an ongoing campaign of violence and intimidation against Britain’s Jewish community is gaining momentum”, pointing to a series of arson and attempted arson attacks targeting the community.
Mr Mirvis said a synagogue in Kenton, north-west London, had been the target of a “despicable arson attack”, noting that a synagogue in Finchley, north London, was attacked last Wednesday, and another building in Hendon, north-west London, was attacked last Friday.
