Police in London have charged three men with arson offences over a March 23 fire involving ambulances owned by a Jewish charity in Golders Green.
Hamza Iqbal 20 and Rehan Khan 19, both British nationals from Leyton, and a 17-year-old boy, a dual British and Pakistani national from Walthamstow, have been charged, following authorisation from the Crown Prosecution Service, with arson being reckless as to whether life would be endangered.
They were all arrested on Wednesday, at different locations in east London. Officers from Counter Terrorism Policing London carried out searches at their addresses.
On Monday, 23 March, four ambulances from Hatzola, a volunteer-led ambulance service operating in the Golders Green area of north London, were set on fire.
Iqbal, Khan and the 17-year-old are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Saturday, April 4.
Head of Counter Terrorism Policing London Commander Helen Flanagan said: “Since this appalling attack last week, we have been working continuously to investigate and identify those responsible. The investigation has now reached a stage where three people have been charged and they will now appear in court.
“I want to reiterate that the support we had from the local community since this attack took place has been incredible, and we will continue to work closely with local policing colleagues to do everything we can to keep the public safe.”
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A police statement also said that, at this stage “the incident has not been declared as terrorism, but due to the circumstances of the incident, along with the specialist capability within CTP, the investigation is being led by detectives from CTP London.’
Detective Chief Superintendent Luke Williams, who leads policing in North West London said: “We know that local community concerns continue to remain high – particularly for our Jewish communities in the Passover festival period. Since the arson attack, we have put in place an enhanced, bespoke policing plan, which has been focused around vulnerable areas not only in Golders Green, but right across London. This has involved a significant number of additional officers on the ground, with the aim of protecting communities, disrupting offenders, and detecting crime. This activity is ongoing and will continue over the coming days and includes specialist officers and capability being deployed alongside local officers. It is also being supported by highly visible armed police patrols to serve as a deterrent to anyone seeking to cause our communities harm.
“As I’ve said before, these are precautionary measures and not in response to any specific threat, and we continue to work alongside our colleagues in Counter Terrorism Policing to support their investigation. We will also continue to work closely with local communities and our partners to listen to their concerns and respond to these.”
Growing attacks amid Israel’s wars
High-profile attacks targeting Jews globally has increased in recent years amid the ongoing Israel-led conflict spreading across the Middle East.
Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza has sparked widespread outrage and condemnation across the world while Israel and the US are also currently engaging in a bloody war against Iran an its regional allies in Lebanon and Yemen.
The true human cost of Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip has far exceeded previous official estimates, with independent research published in the world’s leading medical journals verifying more than 75,000 “violent deaths” by early 2025.
Amid the conflict, major attacks targeting Jews in the UK, USA and Australia have been witnessed.
On October 2, 2025, during the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, a man drove a black Kia Picanto into pedestrians before stabbing worshippers at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation, a pro-Israel synagogue in Higher Crumpsall, a northern suburb of the city of Manchester in North West England.
Then on December 14, an Islamic State (IS)-inspired attack occurred at the Archer Park area of Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, during a celebration of the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah attended by around 1,000 people.
Two gunmen, killed a total of 15 people including 11 men, 3 women and a 10-year-old girl.
On March 12, 2026, a shooting and vehicle-ramming terrorist attack occurred at Temple Israel, a Reform synagogue in West Bloomfield Township, Michigan, United States. 41-year-old Lebanese-American Ayman Mohamed Ghazali rammed his vehicle into the building and opened fire before he died by suicide.
It was reported that he attacked the site after members of his family had been killed in an Israeli airstrike on Lebanon several days earlier.
