Two British men have been arrested in connection with the Golders Green arson attack on four ambulances by a volunteer-run Jewish charity.
The suspects – aged 47 and 45 – were arrested on Wednesday morning at addresses in the north west London and central London areas respectively.
They were arrested on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life and both men have been taken to a London police station where they currently remain in police custody.
Officers are carrying out searches at the two addresses, understood to be in areas near Kilburn and Kings Cross.
The arrests are linked to the ongoing investigation into an arson attack on four ambulances run by Hatzola, a Jewish volunteer-led service, at around 1.35am on Monday.
Metropolitan Police said CCTV footage showed three hooded individuals pouring accelerant on the parked vehicles adding that the investigation “very much remains active”.
The fire happened right next to the Machzike Hadath Synagogue, in Golders Green, north London, where the ambulances were parked.
Residents reported being woken in the early hours by loud bangs after gas canisters stored in the ambulances exploded. The force of the explosions blew out windows, including those of the synagogue, and nearby homes were evacuated as a precaution.
Commander Helen Flanagan, Head of Counter Terrorism Policing London, which is leading the investigation, said: “We have been working around the clock since this appalling attack took place and this has led to these arrests being made this morning.
“This appears to be an important breakthrough in the investigation, but we’re also mindful that CCTV footage of the incident suggests there were at least three people involved.
“We fully recognise the local community will still be concerned and our investigation very much remains active and we will continue to work to identify and seek to arrest all of those who may have been involved.
“I’d like to thank the public and particularly the local Jewish community in the area for their continued support and reiterate our appeal to anyone who might have information that could assist with the investigation to get in touch with us.”
The Community Security Trust, a charity created to provide security to the Jewish community, welcomed the arrests, saying in a statement: “We are grateful to the officers who have worked tirelessly to find those accountable.
“While this development is an important step forward, we know the community will understandably remain concerned.
“Police security measures and CST’s own security operations will therefore remain at their current high level, with continued strong cooperation between CST and the police to protect our community.”
Islamist group Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia (HAYI) has claimed responsibility online for the attack, which police have said is so far being treated as an antisemitic hate crime rather than a terror attack.
The newly formed group is believed to be aligned with Iran and appears to have posted a video on Telegram showing a map of the location of the attack and the ambulances on fire.
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The Metropolitan Police said earlier this week that detectives were aware of the claim of responsibility and were working to determine its authenticity.
