The Guardian: Families fear for relatives in Israel and Gaza – and their own safety

Almost immediately last weekend the violence in Israel and Gaza was being played out on UK streets, convulsing historical Israeli-Palestinian tensions.

By Friday Scotland Yard had confirmed a “massive increase” in suspected antisemitic offences. A day earlier, anti-Muslim cases were reported to have tripled in the days since Hamas attacked. Several Jewish schools closed on security grounds. Another 200 schools have been visited by officers to reassure teachers and pupils.

On the streets, thousands of police have been handed extra patrols. More than 300 synagogues and mosques have been briefed by officers over issues relating to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Communities say they have never felt more fearful.

Abdurrahman Tamimi, who is Palestinian and lives in London said: ‘Already we were facing numerous restrictions and false accusations of glorifying terrorism.”

Already, pro-Palestinian marches have prompted the intervention of the home secretary, Suella Braverman, who warned that singing a chant advocating freedom for Palestinians – and the abolition of Israel – may be a criminal offence.

In Ma’anit’s adopted city of Brighton, attendees of one pro-Palestinian protest last weekend overstepped the line with police making an arrest over comments allegedly supporting Hamas’s attack.