Suspected arson attack on Iranian and Jewish community memorial wall in north London

A suspected arson attack occurred at a memorial wall in Golders Green, north London, in the early hours of Monday morning.

The memorial commemorates victims of Iranian protests in January and Jewish victims of the October 7 attack in Israel.

A man dressed in black was seen setting fire to part of the memorial before fleeing the scene.

The fire caused visible burn and charring marks on a display unit and damaged some photographs and printed materials, but the memorial wall itself was not structurally damaged.

The incident was reported to police just before 7:30pm on Monday, although the fire occurred around 12:15am.

Police are investigating the incident, with counter-terrorism officers leading the inquiry.

Despite this, the attack is not being treated as a terrorist incident.

No arrests have been made so far, and the police continue to search for the suspect.

The memorial holds significant emotional value for both the local Iranian and Jewish communities.

Lisa Marlowe, whose son Jake was killed in the October 7 Israel attack, described the attack as "despicable" and expressed heartbreak over the ongoing violence affecting Jewish people.

Vahid Baghi, who maintains the wall, called the attack "terrible" and confirmed that security measures were in place but were insufficient to prevent the incident.

The memorial has faced prior harassment, including drone sightings and objects being thrown at it.

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