£1.4m raised for Jewish ambulances after arson attack

A fundraiser set up to secure new, safer premises for a Jewish ambulance service has raised £1.4m after four vehicles were set on fire.

The Hatzola ambulances in Golders Green, north-west London, were destroyed in the early hours of Monday.

Four government-loaned ambulances arrived at 1.20pm on Tuesday to replace them, the London Ambulance Service said.

After they were parked, Hatzola chairman Shloimie Richman read a statement saying Monday was the "darkest day" in the charity's existence.

Police are treating the arson attack as an antisemitic hate crime. Counter Terrorism Policing officers are leading the investigation, although it has not been declared a terrorist incident, the Metropolitan Police said.

CCTV shows three people pouring accelerant on the vehicles before setting them on fire and fleeing, the Metropolitan Police said.

More than 200 extra officers will be deployed to protect Jewish communities following the attack, the head of UK counter-terrorism policing has said.

Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor said the Met will use specialist teams including firearms, the mounted branch and drones in the run-up to Passover.

A fundraiser on the CharityExtra platform has raised more than £1.4m of its £5m target.

A post on the fundraising page read: "You've seen the scenes. Heard the harrowing reports. Felt the fear.

"The hate-filled attack on 4 of our ambulances at our base last night shook us all.

"Despite this shocking incident, our mission has not changed. We will continue to save lives."

A separate fundraiser has also been set up to support Hatzola Stamford Hill.

Islamist group Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia (HAYI) has claimed responsibility online for the attack.

It is a newly formed group believed to be aligned with Iran and appears to have posted a video on Telegram showing a map of the location of the attack and the ambulances on fire.

The prime minister has urged communities to "all stand together" in the face of the "horrific antisemitic attack", while Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis called the targeting of the volunteer service "particularly sickening".

Attack on Jewish community

Speaking outside New Scotland Yard on Tuesday, Mr Taylor said: "The Jewish community have put up with a lot of these types of incidents over the last few years, and whilst they're very strong and resilient, they are clearly very frightened, and we absolutely understand that, and that's why our counter terrorism officers are now conducting that investigation."

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'Rapid growth of Iranian state threats is grave'

The head of the Met Police, Sir Mark Rowley, said on Monday: "Britain's Jewish community has in recent years been increasingly targeted by individuals, groups and hostile states, intent on spreading fear, hate and harm."

He was speaking at the annual dinner of the Community Security Trust (CST), a charity that monitors antisemitism in the UK, and added: "The rapid growth in recent years of Iranian state threats is grave: hostile state surveillance activity, 20 disrupted plots, and recent attempted attacks on the Iranian diaspora."

On Monday evening, more than 250 people attended a demonstration against antisemitism in Golders Green.

(c) Sky News 2026: £1.4m raised for Jewish ambulances after arson attack