Three more arrested over alleged anti-Semitic arson on Jewish ambulances in London

Firefighters at the scene in Highfield Rd, Golders Green, London, after an apparent arson attack on four ambulances belonging to the Jewish Community Ambulance service in London. Photo / Getty Images

Three more people have been arrested in connection with an arson attack on four volunteer ambulances run by a Jewish organisation in London, the police said.

Two British men, aged 19 and 20, and a 17-year-old dual British-Pakistani national were arrested at separate addresses in east London, the capital’s Metropolitan Police said.

They were detained on suspicion “of conspiracy to commit arson with intent to endanger life”, the force added.

Two men in their 40s were released on bail last week over the March 23 fire.

The ambulances were parked next to a synagogue in the Golders Green area of northwest London, which has a large Jewish population, when they were set alight.

The ambulances were run by the Hatzola volunteer organisation, which provides free medical transportation and emergency response to those living in north London.

Nobody was physically hurt, but the police said they are treating the incident as “an anti-Semitic hate crime”.

While it has not been declared a terror offence, counter-terrorism officers are leading the investigation.

A little-known Islamist group with possible links to Iran has claimed responsibility.

The Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (HAYI) group, meaning The Islamic Movement of the People of the Right Hand, has also claimed responsibility for similar attacks in Belgium and the Netherlands.

- Agence France-Presse