Ex-Marines Hired to Protect Synagogues After Spate of Attacks
3rd May 2026
Former Royal Marines and veterans of the Parachute Regiment have been hired to protect synagogues and Jewish schools as Britain braces for further antisemitic violence.
The deployment of elite ex-troops for security patrols can be revealed for the first time after the stabbing of two Jewish men in a suspected terrorist attack in Golders Green, northwest London, and a recent spate of fire bombings in the surrounding area.
The wave of incidents influenced the government’s decision on Thursday to raise the terrorism threat level from substantial to severe, meaning that another attack is now “highly likely”. MI5 said on its website that there was an “elevated threat to Jewish and Israeli individuals and institutions”.