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Faith leaders issue joint plea against antisemitic violence
Religious figures from Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, and Zoroastrian communities have signed an open letter condemning attacks on Jewish sites and individuals across Britain, declaring antisemitism a societal responsibility rather than a Jewish community issue.
Recent surge in attacks
The letter, published by the Together Coalition, highlights a wave of violence targeting synagogues and Jewish individuals in recent months. Two weeks ago, two Jewish men-Shloime Rand, 34, and Moshe Shine, 76-were stabbed in Golders Green, north London. A suspect has since been charged with attempted murder in connection with both this attack and a prior assault on a Somali man in South London.
In March, four ambulances owned by the Jewish charity Hatzola were set ablaze in the car park of a Golders Green synagogue. Other incidents include an attack on Finchley Reform Synagogue in north London and an arson attempt at Kenton United Synagogue, where a bottle containing accelerant was thrown through a window.
A call for collective action
The letter states: "The spectre of Jewish people being stabbed at random in the street, killed defending their synagogues, and Jewish infrastructure being firebombed feel like a nightmare from another time." It emphasizes that combating antisemitism is a shared duty, asserting, "This country belongs to you as much as any of us. You are as British as all of us who call this country home."
"This is not a problem for Jewish people to have to respond to. This is a problem for all of us to fix."
Open letter from UK faith leaders and public figures
Leaders respond with urgency
Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis praised the letter as a "powerful riposte to the hateful extremists who have targeted the Jewish community." He expressed hope that institutions, workplaces, schools, and social media platforms would follow suit in addressing the issue.
Brendan Cox, co-founder of the Together Coalition, warned that extremists aim to "divide us, to target minorities on the basis of their race or religion and to turn community against community." He vowed, "We won't let them."
Julie Siddiqi, co-chair of the UK Muslim Network and a signatory, drew parallels between the experiences of Jewish and Muslim communities, stating that shared struggles against faith-based hatred should unite them as "allies in tackling extremism."
Broader context of violence
Last October, two Jewish individuals were killed and three others seriously injured in a car-ramming and stabbing attack outside a Manchester synagogue. Police fatally shot one of the assailants during the incident.
