Antisemitism in London: New bus route launched to prevent Jews from being attacked

A new bus route has been launched in London, United Kingdom, to improve security for the Jewish community in the city, which has been the victim of rising antisemitism, especially after the Oct. 7 massacre perpetrated by the Hamas terrorist organization in southern Israel.

The 310 line will connect the neighborhoods of Stamford Hill, in Hackney, with Golders Green, in Barnet, two areas with a high concentration of the city's Orthodox Jewish population.

This new route, which is in trial period for 12 months, will have no intermediate stops, in order to prevent passengers who harass or assault members of London's Jewish community from boarding.

Sadiq Khan, mayor of London: 'I don't want any Londoner to be scared to leave their home'

Speaking to British news network BBC, Sadiq Khan, mayor of London, said the new route "connects communities, connects congregations" and would ensure that London Jews are "safe when they travel" between the two these locations.

"We have heard stories of Jewish Londoners receiving verbal abuse," said Khan, who is Muslim. He added: "We've also heard stories about Jewish Londoners not leaving their homes... because they're worried about their safety."

The mayor further remarked, "I don't want any Londoner to be scared to leave their home because they're worried about public transport."

According to London Police data, between October and July, there were 2,065 cases of antisemitic hate crimes in the city. Of these, 390 occurred in Barnet and 250 in Hackney.

However, instead of targeting the perpetrators of these hate crimes against Jews, many of them immigrants or the children of migrants from Islamic countries, Mayor Khan prefers to launch a new bus route, so everything seems to indicate that his intention is to put a band-aid on the problem rather than seek a long-term solution.