Counter-terror police investigate attempted arson at Jewish Futures in Hendon

A man carrying a plastic bag with three bottles of flammable liquid approached a row of shops in Hendon in north-west London late on Friday, according to the Metropolitan Police. The bottles failed to ignite fully, and the suspect fled; the shopfront suffered minor damage and no one was injured.

Counter Terrorism Policing London has taken the lead because of “similarities” with other recent incidents in the area, the Met said. The Guardian reports the target was Jewish Futures, an educational charity; the Evening Standard also identified the premises as Jewish Futures and said officers and the London Fire Brigade were called at 10:31pm.

The case sits in a growing cluster of low-tech attacks aimed at specific institutions rather than random public targets. Police said they were not yet linking Friday’s attempted arson to earlier incidents, including an arson attack on volunteer ambulances belonging to a Jewish charity in Golders Green on 23 March, and attempted arson attacks this week on a synagogue in Finchley and a Persian-language media organisation in Park Royal. But counter-terror officers are being used to consolidate evidence, assess patterns, and determine whether the same network, copycats, or opportunistic offenders are involved.

Online claims are complicating the picture. Both the Guardian and the Standard note that a group calling itself Harakat Ashab al‑Yamin al‑Islamia, described as Iran-linked, has claimed responsibility for multiple attacks via Telegram. The Met said it is keeping an “open mind” about motive and is not treating Friday’s incident as terrorism at this stage. That leaves a familiar gap between what is being asserted online and what can be proved in court—especially when perpetrators use disposable materials, brief on-street exposure, and anonymous channels designed to create noise and fear at low cost.

For London’s Jewish community, the practical consequence is not the label applied to the offence but the policing posture that follows. Detective Chief Superintendent Luke Williams said local officers have been engaging with community leaders since the Golders Green attack and that the latest incident will add to fears. He said residents should expect a heightened police presence, including armed patrols and deployments of Project Servator teams trained to spot hostile reconnaissance and preparation.

The operational challenge for authorities is that hardening every potential target is expensive, while attempted arson is cheap and repeatable. Each additional incident forces more patrol hours, more reassurance operations, and more forensic work—costs that scale quickly even when the physical damage is minor.

Police are asking the public for information or footage and said no arrests had been made. The reference number for the Hendon incident is CAD 8987/17APRIL, the Met said.