Police are investigating a suspected arson attack in which a pram was set alight in a block of flats with many young Jewish families in London.
Officers were called at 4.52am on Tuesday June 2 after a man started a fire in an empty pushchair inside a block of flats on Bridge Lane, Golders Green.
A fire alarm alerted residents to the burning pram.
The fire was quickly put out by members of the public. No injuries were reported.
The incident comes after a series of attacks on London’s Jewish communities.
The Met Police said officers were keeping an open mind as to the man's motive.
No arrests have been made.
Senior London MP Bob Blackman raised the “arson attack” with Sir Keir Starmer at Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday.
The Shomrim (North West London) mobile neighborhood watch group also said the incident was an “attempted arson”.
In a post on Tuesday, it said: “In the early hours of this morning, residents of a block of flats on Bridge Lane, NW11, where the majority of residents are Jewish and many are young families, were alerted by a fire alarm.
“Residents reported witnessing a suspect deliberately start a fire in a communal stairwell before fleeing when challenged.
“A resident acted swiftly to extinguish the fire, preventing what could have become a far more serious incident. Thankfully, no injuries were reported.”
A Shomrim team attended the scene, recovered evidence believed to belong to the suspect, and is assisting Scotland Yard with CCTV enquiries.
It stressed that investigations into the motive of the man and the full circumstances remain ongoing.
The targeting of a residential block of flats comes after a string of attacks in recent months on Jewish communities in north west London.
They include attacks on synagogues and Jewish-linked businesses, as well as the double stabbing in Golders Green.
Mr Blackman raised the suspected arson in Parliament.
At PMQs, Harrow East MP Mr Blackman, who chairs the 1922 backbench committee of Tory MPs, stressed: “The regular hate marches we've seen on our streets, with the chanting of globalize the intifada, has led directly to attacks on Jewish businesses, on synagogues, on individuals in the streets, and now an arson attack on where Jewish people live.
“So, the Jewish people of our country now want to see action not warm words.”
Mr Blackman urged Sir Keir to commit to action including expelling foreign students who commit antisemitic acts, to proscribe Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terror organisation, and to close down 13 Iranian-sponsored charities in the UK.
He added; “Will he also take action to ensure that all children are taught the horrors of the Holocaust, the importance of not expressing hatred towards one another, and the true history of the founding of the State of Israel.
“The Jewish people of this country want to feel safe on our streets, and in their homes, and in our country.”
Sir Keir stressed that the Government was determined to tackle the surge in antisemitic incidents in Britain.
“We are united in our belief that we must fight the poison of antisemitism wherever it is found,” he said.
“We are investing more to keep Jewish communities safe, more police patrols, greater security of schools and synagogues, and investing several million pounds to tackle antisemitism within our universities, and bringing in proscription-like powers to clamp down on malign state activity.
“We will set out further steps in coming days.”
The latest arson incident comes just days after a man suspected of being behind some of the earlier attacks was charged in America with a series of terrorism-related offences.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has also warned how it is becoming “fashionable” to be antisemtic at London dinner parties.
The Met Police said enquiries were continuing into the suspected pram arson incident and anyone with information that could help the investigation is urged to contact 101 quoting CAD 7231/02JUN.
