Jewish schoolchildren victims of antisemitic assault at Tube station
A group of Jewish schoolchildren were assaulted in a suspected hate crime at a north London tube station.
Officers were called to Belsize Park underground at roughly 4pm on Monday to reports that the pupils had been attacked.
The incident is being investigated as a hate crime by the British Transport Police (BTP).
The alleged offenders are believed to be a group of children from another school.
Police are trawling through CCTV footage as part of the investigation into the alleged incident which took place as pupils headed home after the school day.
A BTP statement said: “Detectives are appealing for witnesses after an assault on a group of Jewish schoolchildren. The incident is being treated as a hate crime.
“Enquiries are ongoing to identify the offenders who are believed to be a group of children from another school.”
Reports of antisemitic hate crimes trebled in London last year according to police data. They rose from 562 incidents in 2022 to 1,729 in 2023. That represents a more than 200 per cent increase.
The Met Police has said last year that it saw an especially sharp rise in reports of antisemitism around the time of the Hamas attack on Israel in October.
Between October 1 and October 18 218 incidents were reported. There was also a rise in reported Islamophobic hate crimes.
Anyone with information on the Belsize Park assault is asked to text 61016 or call 0800 40 50 40 with reference 471 of 24 June.To remain anonymous contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
