‘My mum tells me to wear my Jewish star under my shirt’ – Jews speak out on feeling ‘afraid’ in Sadiq Khan’s London: ‘It’s not safe!’
Sadiq Khan has been lambasted for “failing Jews” with campaigners at an antisemitism march in London telling GB News they feel afraid to express their faith in the capital.
Thousands of people attended the rally organised by Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) in support of Britain’s Jewish community.
The event was the organisation’s second annual march since the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7 2023.
The rally comes as antisemitic crime has quadrupled in the past year, with Jews becoming the most targeted faith minority in the UK.
CAA said: “Over the past year, antisemitic hate crime has quadrupled, and Jews are now the most targeted faith minority in the country, despite our minuscule numbers. Week after week, our capital city and other urban areas have become no-go zones not just for Jews but for the majority of British people, who say that Palestine protests put them off going into town.
“These protests have unleashed a tidal wave of antisemitism that has left no part of our society unaffected. Jewish people feel like we’re drowning.”
Many Jews have felt failed by the British Government as well as by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, who has failed to curb the hostile pro-Palestine protests that overtake central London every other week.
The Met Police have also faced accusations of “two-tier policing” for failing to act amidst violence at pro-Palestinian rallies.
One demonstrator told GB News: “They [the police] do nothing to protect us. The police and the Government need to wake up and realise that these people are dangerous for the whole world, not just the UK. They refuse to prosecute them, they don’t care.”
Another protester said: “It’s been very noticeable since the spring of this year that policing of the protests and the policing of counter protests has been very much ‘two tier policing’, with severe restrictions put on those counter protesting and differential treatment.”
When asked if they feel safe as Jews living in London, several attendees said they did not.
“I wear a kippah on my head and very often it’s in my pocket because I feel that it’s not safe, that there is a threat. It’s a disturbing and threatening time,” said one Jewish man.
A young Jewish university student also added: “Myself and my family have been afraid. My mum has been telling me to put my Jewish star under my shirt constantly.”
Speaking on Sadiq Khan’s inaction towards the Palestinian protests, an Israeli demonstrator who lives in London said: “He’s definitely not doing enough. Everyone is failing the Jews right now. The city of London, the Government. There is a reason why we feel we need to march here today.”
A spokesman for the Mayor of London said: “Antisemitism has absolutely no place in London and the Mayor continues to ensure the police takes a zero-tolerance approach.
“He has also invested £15million to tackle hate, intolerance and extremism, and is working closely with community, faith and police leaders to help ensure everyone in the capital feels safe and is safe.
“This includes maintaining a strong relationship with the Community Security Trust as we work to tackle antisemitism and continue to build a safer London for everyone.”
GB News has approached the Met Police for comment.