UK to invest further £25m in security for Jewish communities after London stabbing

Shabana Mahmood has promised to “do everything in my power” to keep British Jews safe, as police said the suspect in the stabbing of two men in Golders Green, north London, on Wednesday was a 45-year-old British national born in Somalia. Ministers said a further £25m would be invested to increase security for Jewish communities after the suspected terrorist attack in north London. The funding will be aimed at boosting police patrols and protection around synagogues, schools and community centres. Legislation creating proscription-like powers to pursue people and organisations acting on behalf of malign state-sponsored groups will also be “fast-tracked” in the coming weeks, ministers said. It is understood the draft laws will be included in the king’s speech setting out the government’s legislative agenda for the next parliamentary session, on 13 May. The home secretary said the suspect was born in Somalia and came to the UK lawfully as a child in the 1990s and was a British national. She said the two victims, Shilome Rand, 34, and Moshe Shine, 76, continued to be treated in hospital and were in a stable condition. The Metropolitan police commissioner, Mark Rowley, said on Wednesday that the individual in custody has a “history of serious violence and mental health issues”. Speaking on BBC Breakfast, Mahmood said she understood “the very real fear that is being felt” in the Jewish community. …