British police have arrested a fourth person in connection with an arson attack on ambulances belonging to a Jewish community charity. The arrest took place at a London court on Saturday, where three other suspects were already appearing.
The three individuals previously charged are Hamza Iqbal, 20, Rehan Khan, 19, and a 17-year-old boy who cannot be named for legal reasons. They are accused of setting fire to four Hatzola ambulances on 23 March while the vehicles were parked near a synagogue in Golders Green, north London. Damage caused by the fire is estimated at nearly £1 million.
The ambulances belong to Hatzola, a volunteer emergency service that works alongside the NHS and primarily serves the Orthodox Jewish community. Fortunately, no one was injured, although the explosions from cylinders on the vehicles shattered nearby windows.
A prosecutor from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) told Westminster Magistrates’ Court that police believe four people were involved in the attack, with the fourth suspect arrested on Saturday morning. All three previously charged have been remanded in custody, with the 17-year-old held in youth detention. Iqbal and Khan are from Leyton, while the unnamed teen is from Walthamstow.
The court heard that the attack appeared to be "premeditated and targeted" against the Jewish community. The suspects appeared in grey tracksuits and spoke only to confirm their names and addresses, with family members in attendance.
Police are investigating whether an Iranian-backed group, the Islamic Movement of the People of the Right Hand, which claimed responsibility online, played a role. The group has previously been linked to similar incidents in Europe.
Although counter-terrorism officers are leading the investigation, the Metropolitan Police said the attack has not yet been classified as terrorism.
Commander Helen Flanagan, head of Counter Terrorism Policing London, said: “Since this appalling attack last week, we have been working continuously to investigate and identify those responsible.”
Detective Superintendent Luke Williams added that additional patrols in areas with large Jewish populations are precautionary measures, especially during the Passover festival period.
The three charged suspects are due to appear at the Old Bailey on 24 April.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the incident at the time as a “deeply shocking antisemitic arson attack”.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian arrived in New Delhi on Friday to attend the weekend BRICS summit, amid the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict, joining...
Shanghai Enflame Technology, one of China’s leading artificial intelligence chipmakers and a domestic rival to Nvidia, surged more than 200 p...
Georgia’s top security official has held face-to-face talks with his Azerbaijani counterpart in China, with both sides pledging to deepen int...
Four people were killed, including a child, in Ukrainian strikes on the Russian port city of Novorossiysk overnight, according to the governor of the Krasnodar region. Ukraine's drone forces commander, Robert Brovdi, said Russian military ships were destroyed in the attacks.
Overnight Iranian strikes on an air base in Jordan damaged multiple U.S. aircraft and left one without a wing, American media reported. Meanwhile, explosions were heard across parts of southern Iran according to local media reports.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) said on Wednesday they attacked two U.S. vessels and eight oil tankers in the Persian Gulf, calling the strikes a response to a U.S. attack on five Iranian tankers.
Ukrainian forces struck a Russian oil refinery in Siberia and a seaport in Dagestan in the past 24 hours, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. He will meet Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Thursday to discuss air defences for Ukraine over winter.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian arrived in New Delhi on Friday to attend the weekend BRICS summit, amid the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict, joining a host of foreign dignitaries.
Shanghai Enflame Technology, one of China’s leading artificial intelligence chipmakers and a domestic rival to Nvidia, surged more than 200 per cent on its market debut on Friday, highlighting strong investor demand for homegrown semiconductor companies.
Mexico and the U.S. are racing to secure a trade deal before the U.S. midterm elections in less than eight weeks, according to six sources familiar with the talks, with failed negotiations between Washington and Canada adding urgency.
A Texas judge ruled on Thursday that TikTok violated the state's consumer protection law by misleading users about how the platform filtered content for minors and the effectiveness of its Restricted Mode feature.
Sweden's centre-left opposition holds a narrow lead over the ruling right-wing bloc ahead of Sunday's parliamentary election, leaving Social Democrat leader Magdalena Andersson well placed for a return as prime minister.
French public broadcaster France Télévisions has removed the replay of a programme in which actress Adèle Haenel accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and France of complicity.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment