LONDON A 45-year-old Somali-born British man appeared in court on Friday charged with the attempted murder of three men after stabbing two Jewish men in an anti-Semitic terror attack in north London.
Essa Suleiman was also charged with one count of possessing a bladed article in a public place and was remanded in custody to appear at London’s Old Bailey Court on May 15.
The Metropolitan Police said an investigation led by London’s counter-terrorism policing unit found that the defendant attacked two Jewish men on a street in Golders Green on Wednesday, shortly after he attacked another Jewish man in a separate incident in southeast London.
Commander Helen Flanagan, head of London CTP, said: “Our thoughts are with the affected victims and specialist officers will continue to support them as they recover.”
Two men, aged 76 and 34, were treated for stab wounds at the scene in Highfield Avenue, Golders Green, before being taken to hospital. The 34-year-old has now been discharged from hospital, but the 76-year-old remains in hospital and is said to be in a stable condition.
“As part of the investigation, detectives were also made aware of an incident reported to police in south-east London early on Wednesday, April 29. The suspect in this incident is believed to be the same person who was arrested in Golders Green,” the Metropolitan Police said.
According to court reports, Suleiman had been living in supported accommodation for people discharged from a secure mental health hospital.
The Golders Green attack has been officially declared a terrorist incident and CTP London is said to be investigating. That led Britain’s Joint Terrorism Analysis Center to raise the country’s national threat level on Thursday from “severe” (meaning an attack is possible) to “severe” (meaning an attack is highly likely within the next six months).
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: “As the threat level increases, I urge everyone to remain vigilant in their daily lives and to report any concerns to the police. I can reassure everyone that our world-class security services and police are working around the clock to keep our country safe.”
Earlier, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer visited the scene of the terror attack in Golders Green, London’s main Jewish centre. He called for a fight against the rise of anti-Semitism in the country and promised to quickly introduce laws to target “malign state actors” who want to “harm British Jews”, including to deal with “threats posed by countries such as Iran”.
The US and Israeli attacks in West Asia have been linked to several recent attacks on London’s Jewish community, with a group called Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia previously claiming responsibility for some attacks on the Telegram app.
The Metropolitan Police said 28 people had been arrested in connection with the incidents since the arson attack on the Hatzola Jewish charity ambulance in Golders Green in March. Among them, eight people were charged with arson and one was convicted of arson.
The Metropolitan Police added that a significant policing operation has been launched to provide reassurance and deterrence, which has been further enhanced using highly visible and other specialist police resources.
This article was generated from automated news agency feeds without modifications to the text.
