There are two hair-raising aspects about the antisemitic attack on a group of friends having a night out in the small hours of Sunday morning.
One — obviously, self-evidently, goes without saying — is that it’s repulsive that people should be picked on for speaking Hebrew in public. It’s odious that an individual can be asked in London whether he or she is Jewish and then subjected to a barrage of abuse... “F*** Jews; Free Palestine” and the rest of it. It’s outrageous that a young woman and her companions could be physically assaulted — by a group of up to 20 young men — on the basis that she said that yes, she is indeed Jewish, and good for her for saying so. This, folks, is Leicester Square. Not some tucked-away dark corner. Pretty well the centre of London.
What is happening to a metropolis where there are no police available in the very centre of things... at 1.30am?
The other astonishing aspect of the thing, which affects us all regardless of ethnicity, is that the young woman who spoke to the papers said that she called the police no fewer than 10 times to report what was happening. The operator was contrite. “I’m sorry, it takes some time; you’re not the only one who called tonight.” It was, in the event, 28 minutes before a copper turned up. By then her companions had been hit on the head, she suffered neck and leg injuries and was frightened that she was going to die.
What is happening to a metropolis where there are no police available in the very centre of things... at 1.30am? Leicester Square should have police around at all times and more at weekends. Why isn’t there? What more important things have the police to do than to patrol, on foot, the one place where people always congregate?
God knows, we should have a visible police presence at all times, but self-evidently there. Last week I was in Paris and police were simply everywhere; it would have gone ill with anyone trying it on there.
Another hair-raising aspect of the thing was that this took so long to elicit a response, even though the unfortunate victim called again and again. What else was she supposed to do? What could she do? If the police aren’t in Leicester Square to keep the heart of London safe what are they actually for? I think we should be told. Step forward, Met Commissioner Sir Mark.
