Arson attack burns four Jewish volunteer ambulances in London

Four ambulances belonging to the Jewish community volunteer ambulance service were set on fire in Golders Green in north London early Monday, with police treating the incident as an antisemitic hate crime. The Metropolitan Police said officers were called to Highfield Road around 1.45am; the London Fire Brigade sent six engines and about 40 firefighters.

According to the Guardian, the fire damaged four vehicles and several cylinders on board exploded, shattering windows in an adjacent block of flats. No injuries were reported. A local neighbourhood-watch group, Shomrim, said the loud explosions were caused by oxygen tanks rather than an explosive device.

The attack lands on a piece of infrastructure that exists precisely because communities do not rely solely on state provision. Volunteer ambulance services such as Hatzola operate with local fundraising, local staffing and local dispatch, often filling gaps in response times and cultural competence. That practical success also makes them legible symbols: a marked fleet, a known base, a predictable parking area.

Police said they were examining CCTV and online footage and were looking for three suspects at an early stage. Superintendent Sarah Jackson said officers would increase patrols and engage with faith leaders. The Community Security Trust, which monitors antisemitism in the UK, said it was assisting police and noted similarities with recent arson attacks on Jewish emergency vehicles in Belgium and the Netherlands.

The fire took place in a synagogue car park, Golders Green councillor Dean Cohen told Jewish News, calling it “particularly chilling” given heightened fears over antisemitism. The London Fire Brigade said the explosions from the cylinders increased the blast effect despite the incident being an arson attack.

Hatzola said its north-west London facility remained operational. The damaged ambulances did not stop the service from dispatching, but the incident forced evacuations of nearby homes and road closures—an immediate public cost created by targeting a privately run emergency function.

At 1.45am on Monday, four ambulances were burning in a residential car park. The oxygen cylinders were the only thing that exploded.