Kemi Badenoch today warned of an ‘epidemic of violence’ against Jewish people and spoke of a need to ‘drain the swamp’ as she visited the scene of the Golders Green attack.
The Tory leader arrived in the north London suburb on Wednesday afternoon following the stabbing of two Jewish men in what has been declared a terror attack.
A 45-year-old man – said to have a history of serious violence and mental health issues – has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
Jewish leaders have called for tougher action on anti-Semitic violence after the double stabbing at around 11.15am.
As she visited the scene, Mrs Badenoch told local residents: ‘I am not the Government, but I am telling them what I think needs to happen.
‘We need to make sure when people carry out these activities that they feel the full force of the law. We need to tackle Islamic extremism – this is something that is fuelling it, it’s not the only thing, but it is fuelling it.
‘We need to tackle the misinformation that we’re seeing where people are attacking Jewish businesses in print, Gail’s bakery and so on, we have to root this thing out.
‘We’ve spent a lot of time being tolerant and hoping it would go away, but we need more action now, not just words.’
Kemi Badenoch warned of an ‘epidemic of violence’ against Jewish people and spoke of a need to ‘drain the swamp’ as she visited the scene of the Golders Green attack
The Tory leader arrived in the north London suburb on Wednesday afternoon following the stabbing of two Jewish men in what has been declared a terror attack
Jewish leaders have called for tougher action on anti-Semitic violence after the double stabbing at around 11.15am
The Tory leader added: ‘I can see there are certain things that are fuelling this, we need to drain the swamp, there are things that can be done.’
Prior to her visit to Golders Green, and shortly after news of the attack emerged, Mrs Badenoch had posted on social media: ‘Jewish people in our country are under constant attack.
‘This is no longer a growing pattern. There is an epidemic of violence against Jewish people.
‘It is now a national emergency and needs to be treated as such by the Government and public authorities.’
Two men, aged 76 and 34, are in a stable condition in hospital after they were stabbed in Highfield Avenue, Golders Green.
Disturbing footage posted online appears to show a man waiting at a bus stop putting on a kippah before an attacker lunges at him.
Another clip shows two police officers facing down the knifeman in the middle of the road, before using a Taser and kicking him repeatedly in the head.
Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley told journalists that the officers who arrested the suspected terrorist believed he had a bomb when they confronted him.
The Scotland Yard boss and Labour minister Sarah Sackman, the local MP for Finchley and Golders Green, faced heckles of ‘resign’ and ‘shame on you’ as they attended the scene.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood pledged that the Government would ‘strain every sinew’ to keep Jewish people safe, while a Cobra meeting was called following the stabbing.
The King, currently on a visit to the US, is being kept informed and ‘is naturally deeply concerned’ about the impact on the Jewish community, Buckingham Palace said.
The scene of Wednesday’s attack is around half a mile from a memorial wall where an attempted arson attack took place on Monday and near to where four Jewish community ambulances were destroyed by fire in late March.
These are among a number of alleged arson attacks on Jewish sites in London in recent weeks, with a suspected Iran-backed group called Hayi (Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia) claiming responsibility.
It has also said it is responsible for Wednesday’s stabbing, although this is being treated with some scepticism due to the differing nature of the knife attack.
The other incidents involve arson or attempted arson, and one where a drone was flown near the Israeli embassy.