Condemning antisemitism and the weaponisation of antisemitism

30 April 2026

Yesterday two Jewish men were stabbed in north London. It was the latest in a series of attacks on Jewish vehicles, buildings and now individuals. The stabbings are the only injuries to date. The two men are stable, one expects to be home tomorrow. According to the Met Police, the suspect has a history of serious violence and mental health issues. There is no place for antisemitism in our society. There is no place for racism in our society.

What is troubling, however, is the way the attack has been weaponised. The Israeli president Isaac Herzog said it has become “dangerous to openly walk the streets as a Jew” in London. Starmer responded to the attack by showing the kind of support for the Jewish community that he has singularly failed to show to other communities, in particular Muslims. Meanwhile the attack is being treated as a terrorist incident. The UK terrorism watchdog claimed that antisemitism is the “biggest national emergency since covid.” This is playing into the UK government’s plan to proscribe the IRGC, even though there is no evidence of a link.

This kind of hyperbolic response isn’t doing anyone any favours, least of all the Jewish community. As Jonathan Cook notes: “The government, police and BBC spent years maliciously conflating criticism of Israeli atrocities with hatred of Jews. Now they cite as proof of that ‘antisemitism’ anyone who takes them at their word—that Jews and Israel are inseparable—and strikes out at random Jewish targets.”

An allegedly pro-Iranian group—Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (HAYI), which has said it was behind other attacks in London and across Europe—claimed responsibility for the stabbings. The group appears to be a cover operation as it has made numerous basic errors in its previous claims that make a link to Iran highly unlikely. Iran also has no history of coordinating antisemitic attacks in Europe. It has no interest in starting attacks as it defends itself from Israel and the US’s joint illegal attack on its territory. Iran protects its own Jewish citizens.

Strangely HAYI was established in March 2026—right after Israel First launched their illegal war. Following one of the attacks claimed by the group, Starmer reiterated his determination to proscribe the IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps), even though there is no evidence of it carrying out a terrorist attack. He has the strong backing of the chief Rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis, a dedicated supporter of Israel, and the UK Jewish establishment. Although Starmer didn’t repeat his determination to proscribe the IRGC yesterday home secretary Shabana Mahmood declared that she would “be making decisions in the very near future about the groups that we will be designating as state-linked.”

Of some note, a significant grouping in the UK Jewish-Zionist population believes that Starmer has betrayed Jews by recognising Palestinian statehood, even though he simultaneously supported Israel’s genocide of the Palestinians. There’s just no pleasing some people. During his visit to Golders Green yesterday pro-Israeli demonstrators chanted “Keir Starmer, Jew harmer” and demanded IRGC proscription.

Starmer is committed to proscribing the IRGC in the next parliamentary session. If he gets his way the UK will join the US, Canada, Australia, Sweden, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain—basically the usual suspects. For the rest of the world: no. However the US, Canada, Australia and a much broader western collation have shown their “flexibility” when it comes to proscribing groups as terrorist. They were, for instance, quick to waive their previous objections to Al-Qaida when it came to ratifying the appointment of Ahmed al-Sharaa as the replacement for Assad in Syria. Let’s call it what it is: strategic hypocrisy carried out in the geopolitical interests of Israel and the desire of western powers to maintain influence in West Asia/North Africa.

The US and the UK have made no moves to proscribe the IDF, which is the equivalent of the IRGC—the military wing of the Israeli government—but is exponentially more terroristic. Unlike the IRGC, which is merely defending Iran, ie carrying out its basic duty, the IDF is currently engaged in seven illegal wars/occupations—Gaza, the West Bank, Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, Iraq. In all instances it attacks civilians and their infrastructure as part of its attempt to dominate. Many in the IDF hold dual citizenship, including in the UK. These participants in a genocide come and go as they please, even though many have been identified as participating in war crimes (mainly because they’ve gone on social media boasting about these crimes).

Starmer’s wife is Jewish and has extensive family in Israel—Starmer has said that half his family is in Israel—so it’s reasonable to assume that Starmer has some family in the IDF given that serving in the IDF is compulsory in Israel. Attorney General Richard Hermer—someone I grew up with in a UK Jewish-Zionist youth movement—confirmed in February that he has “dear family members currently serving in the IDF”. Suella Braverman, ex-Home Secretary, said in February that she has “close family members who serve in the IDF”.

Perhaps this is one reason why the UK government would prefer to proscribe a non-terroristic military organisation (the IRGC) rather than an actively terroristic one (the IDF). Perhaps this is also one reason why the UK government is so determined to proscribe Palestine Action—a civil disobedience organisation that is opposed to genocide and has sustained damage to Elbit Systems, the largest Israeli weapons manufacturer—than stop alleged war criminals hanging out in London cafes. Starmer and Hermer, having risen to the top via human rights legal work, are willing to overturn the UK legal system in order to nail a tiny group of young people who oppose genocide. Along the way they’ve enabled the arrest of 3,500 pensioners.

To contextualise the rampant violence of Israel and the IDF, only the US is engaged in as many acts of simultaneous foreign aggression: Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Nigeria, Venezuela. This excludes the US’s sponsorship of all of Israel’s wars. Meanwhile US military, oil and AI shares are rising fast. The Israeli stock market has climbed 99% since 7/10. There is no meaningful way to disentangle Zionism, capitalism, war and genocide.

Back to the two non-fatal stabbings. The story appeared on the front pages of the Guardian, the Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mail, the Times, the Daily Mirror, the Daily Star, the Daily Express, the i Paper, the Financial Times and the Metro. The BBC ran the story as a live feed. CNN also covered the story. The Times reported on the UK terrorism watchdog claiming antisemitism is the “biggest national emergency since covid.” Latest estimates put the number of UK deaths from covid at 232,112. There was an entire lockdown that wrecked the psychological health of young people and trashed the economy while benefitting tech corporations and government cronies. For the terrorism watchdog the death of two Jewish people in the Manchester synagogue attack of last October plus the injuring of two more plus a handful of attacks on Jewish vehicles and buildings that have resulted in no injuries is as serious. And there’s no evidence yet of any link to a terrorist organisation.

Let’s bear in mind that in 2025 there were close to 50,000 knife offences in the UK. A little over 170 of these were fatal. As far as it’s possible to discern, none of these homicides or offences made the front pages. Then again the vast majority of victims were people from Black and other ethnic backgrounds. It’s clear there’s a hierarchy in how life is valued and how these stories are reported.

Herzog made his comments about the UK no longer being safe for Jews as Israel killed two children in Gaza on Tuesday. Israel has killed another four people in the last 24 hours. Since the so-called ceasefire of October Israel has killed 823 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 2,308. The death toll during the genocide stands minimally at 72,599. Air strikes and artillery fire have been intensifying in Khan Yunis and Gaza City these last few days. Residents compare the intensity to the frequency experienced after 7/10.

As Herzog’s stunning hypocrisy sank in, earlier this morning the IDF seized more than 20 of 55 Gaza-bound vessels near Greece, 1,000 km from Gaza, in international waters. Israeli forces ordered participants to move to the front of the boats and kneel. They also smashed engines and destroyed navigation equipment. Previously the furthest Israel has intercepted a flotilla was 133 km from its coastline.

Tariq Ra’ouf, an activist and writer aboard the flotilla, described the action as “truly unprecedented.” Francesca Albanese responded on X: “How on earth is it possible that Israel is allowed to assault and seize vessels in international waters just off Greece/Euroe? Besides what you can think of Apartheid Israel and its genodical leaders, this should send shockwaves across Europe. Apartheid without borders.” The Global Sumud Flotilla posted: “Tonight, the world is witnessing the export of the Israeli military’s doctrine of engineered abandonment. In a violent raid in international waters, Israeli naval forces have intercepted, boarded, and systematically disabled various boats on the Global Sumud Flotilla.”

Israel acts with impunity beyond its borders like no other country on the planet—other than the United States.

Meanwhile Israel has killed 2,500 people, including 170 children, since invading Lebanon (for at least the sixth time). Yesterday the IDF killed Mila, four years old, alongside her mother during an attack in Tayr Debba, southern Lebanon. It also destroyed a water station in the town of Batouliyeh—the town’s residents depend on the station for water. Journalists along with Israeli soldiers report that everything is being destroyed. Today the IDF has killed another 16 people. Israel’s actions in Lebanon as well as in Iran follow the genocidal playbook of Gaza.

So far 1.2 million Lebanese have bene displaced. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent has described the crisis as reaching catastrophic levels. Just wait for the immigration crisis to reach Europe before the far right and supine governments attack Muslim migrants to gain support.

Israel’s illegal war on Iran, which it strong-armed the US into joining, has achieved none of its objectives. As everyone understands, instead of engineering “regime change” it has strengthened Iranian unity. It has also persuaded the Iranian leadership to take control of the Strait of Hormuz as an act of self-defence. Israel cries out that Iran’s seizure of control of international waters is illegal while illegally attacking boats in the flotilla. It has illegally blockaded Gaza’s coastline since 2007. Israel is in fact illegal given that its establishment in 1948 was conditional on the creation of a Palestinian state alongside it.

As Herzog claims that UK Jews are under attack while having nothing to say about Israel’s ongoing and expanding genocide, the world is entering a recession of Israel’s making. Poorer countries are already being hit hard, including in the Pacific Islands. Oil has risen to $120/barrel. Average prices are hitting a four-year high. Trump’s oil sponsors are grateful. Meanwhile oil companies are reaping record profits.

Rather than posture about opposing antisemitism while supporting the primary cause of antisemitism, we must oppose antisemitism while critiquing the primary cause of antisemitism—the country that says it is acting in the name of Jewish people, Israel.