World Jewish News

Jewish boy viciously assaulted on his way home from school in London's Stamford Hill

An 8-year-old Jewish boy was viciously beaten in an unprovoked attack on his way home from school in Stamford Hill, a district in north-east London, the Jewish neighbourhood security watchgroup Shomrim reported.

The attack left the child traumatised and unable to talk for hours.

He was treated by emergency medical service Hatzola, who transferred him to hospital due to swelling and marks near his chest, neck, shoulder and face.

According Shomrim, the child was walking home from his school in Stamford Hill when he was attacked in what the group called “a shocking vicious attack.’’

The boy escaped after two people came to his aid and chased away the attacker. The boy “ran home and up all the stairs before collapsing. He was crying and couldn't talk for the next four and a half hours,” Shomrim said.

He later described how “a white man wearing gloves attacked him from behind, pushed him to the wall and beat him severely”.

"This attack has affected this young boy's life severely. He keeps on having flashbacks and goes into shock mode where he loses his speech again,’’ the group said.

"It is unacceptable that children can no longer walk home from school safely. Shomrim volunteers have increased patrols in the local area and are scouring through hours of CCTV."

London’s Metropolitan Police said they were investigating the assault.

According to the Community Security Trust (CST), the watchdog, the Jewish community in the UK recorded 767 antisemitic attacks in the first half of 2017, the highest figure recorded within six months since monitoring began in 1984..

2016 saw the most anti-Semitic crime ever recorded in Britain, with a 45% rise in anti-Semitic crime since 2014, but a reduction in the number of anti-Semites charged by police and only 15 cases prosecuted.

EJP