London — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was heckled Thursday during a visit to Golders Green, a longtime center of the British Jewish community, a day after two Jewish men were wounded in a stabbing that authorities called an antisemitic terrorist attack.
As Starmer arrived to meet emergency responders, residents booed and shouted insults including “traitor” and “coward.” The attack followed a series of recent incidents — including arson attempts at synagogues and other attacks on Jewish sites — that have left the community alarmed.
“It’s utter horror,” an Orthodox Jewish resident who asked to remain anonymous told CBS News. “I can’t believe what’s going on. We have to live in fear — constantly looking behind our backs, wondering if someone might attack us with a knife … and even if we leave, where do we go? There are people trying to attack us everywhere.”
Residents said they were initially shocked and saddened by the stabbing, but not surprised. Anger and demands for government action quickly followed.
Ben Grossnass, a volunteer with Shomrim, the Jewish community security group who was among the first at the scene, said the community is “in shock, understandably,” citing a number of arson attacks and a local rise in antisemitism.
The government raised the national terrorism threat level from “substantial” to “severe,” citing increased risks from Islamist and extreme right-wing terrorism. Police later announced a 45-year-old man had been charged with two counts of attempted murder in connection with the double stabbing.
Dov Forman, a 22-year-old author and activist from Golders Green whose great-grandmother Lily Ebert survived Auschwitz, said violence had long been feared in the area. “No one here is shocked or surprised that this has happened,” he told CBS News. “We all knew after previous attacks that this was not a question of if there would be another attack, but simply when.”
The government announced plans for an additional $34 million to combat antisemitism, including increased police patrols and enhanced security for synagogues, community centers and schools. Critics, however, say antisemitic rhetoric has been normalized and allowed to grow.
Forman pointed to chants at some pro-Palestinian protests, including calls to “globalize the intifada,” saying such rhetoric has been permitted for years and is now manifesting in real-world violence. “People are listening to those calls, taking them seriously, and acting on them — not just attacking Jewish people, but Jewish institutions, too,” he said.
In December, Britain’s two largest police forces, the Metropolitan Police and Greater Manchester Police, announced an “enhanced approach” to counter antisemitism, warning that officers would arrest protesters who use certain slogans and phrases that can incite violence.
“We know communities are concerned about placards and chants such as ‘globalize the intifada,’ and those using it at future protest or in a targeted way should expect the Met and GMP to take action,” the forces said in a joint statement at the time.
Many in Golders Green urged the broader public to act. “This is not just an attack on the Jewish community — this is an attack on Britain,” Forman said. “We need the silent majority to start standing up, because it may become too late if we remain silent.”
Another resident agreed, saying smaller antisemitic incidents had been building and foreshadowed a larger attack. “We really need action from the government now,” they said. “There’s been too much tolerance. … What’s happening on social media, and with some preachers — rhetoric that starts as anti-Israel often turns into anti-Jewish hate, and this is the result.”
The stabbing has heightened anxiety in the community. “People are going out to eat, sitting in restaurants, and now they’re looking over their shoulders, wondering if someone might come at them with a knife,” one resident said. “Before today, I felt relatively safe. After today, I’m not so sure. Unless there is real, decisive action from the government, I don’t think the Jewish community will feel safe.”
Starmer called the attack “utterly appalling” and said attacks on the Jewish community are attacks on Britain. He thanked community organizations for their response and vowed those responsible would be brought to justice.
Opposition Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the threat of antisemitism must be taken seriously and argued that ideological drivers — including Islamist extremism — must be confronted. “We should not deal with this with kid gloves. We spent a lot of time hoping this was temporary — it’s not. This is a national emergency,” she told CBS News.