London’s Jewish Museum evacuated after bomb scare
Around 100 visitors forced to leave building after anonymous call
The Jewish Museum in north London was forced to evacuate around noon yesterday after receiving an anonymous call about a bomb threat.
Approximately 100 visitors were in the building at the time of the call, including two school groups.
Police officers closed off part of the road and searched the building but found nothing suspicious. The museum reopened later that afternoon.
A spokesman for the museum said: “We work closely with the police and the Community Security Trust [a charity that monitors antisemitic hate crimes] on our security procedures and were able to evacuate the building quickly and safely. We would like to thank our staff and visitors for their patience and cooperation.”
Security at the museum had already been stepped up prior to yesterday’s bomb scare. Its chief executive Abigail Morris told Museums Journal last month that the museum had increased the number of security guards it employs following the terrorist attack on the Jewish Museum in Brussels in 2014.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that other museums related to Jewish history in the UK have undertaken similar precautions.
Yesterday’s bomb threat is the latest in a growing series of antisemitic incidents targeted at Jewish institutions in the UK and elsewhere. The Sydney Jewish Museum in Australia was also forced to close yesterday after receiving a bomb threat.
According to figures compiled by the Community Security Trust, the number of antisemitic incidents recorded in the UK reached a record high of 1,309 last year, a 36% increase on the previous year.
Approximately 100 visitors were in the building at the time of the call, including two school groups.
Police officers closed off part of the road and searched the building but found nothing suspicious. The museum reopened later that afternoon.
A spokesman for the museum said: “We work closely with the police and the Community Security Trust [a charity that monitors antisemitic hate crimes] on our security procedures and were able to evacuate the building quickly and safely. We would like to thank our staff and visitors for their patience and cooperation.”
Security at the museum had already been stepped up prior to yesterday’s bomb scare. Its chief executive Abigail Morris told Museums Journal last month that the museum had increased the number of security guards it employs following the terrorist attack on the Jewish Museum in Brussels in 2014.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that other museums related to Jewish history in the UK have undertaken similar precautions.
Yesterday’s bomb threat is the latest in a growing series of antisemitic incidents targeted at Jewish institutions in the UK and elsewhere. The Sydney Jewish Museum in Australia was also forced to close yesterday after receiving a bomb threat.
According to figures compiled by the Community Security Trust, the number of antisemitic incidents recorded in the UK reached a record high of 1,309 last year, a 36% increase on the previous year.