Four men plead guilty to March arson attack on Hatzalah ambulances in London

Jerusalem Post/Diaspora/AntisemitismHamza Iqbal, 20, Rehan Khan, 19, Judex Atshatshi, 18, and Saif Ali, 18, admitted to charges of destroying or damaging property while being reckless as to whether life would be endangered.Follow us on GoogleAn aerial view as fire services continue to monitor the scene after four Hatzola ambulances were set on fire overnight next to Machzike Hadath Synagogue, on March 23, 2026 in the Golders Green area of London, England.(photo credit: Leon Neal/Getty Images)AUGUST 28, 2026 16:47Updated: AUGUST 28, 2026 18:25Four young British men pleaded guilty on Friday to charges over an arson attack on community ambulances in London, the first of a spate of incidents targeting the UK's Jewish community earlier this year.Hamza Iqbal, 20, Rehan Khan, 19, Judex Atshatshi, 18, and Saif Ali, 18, appeared at London's Old Bailey court on Friday and admitted destroying or damaging property, being reckless as to whether life would be endangered.The torching of four ambulances belonging to Jewish volunteer emergency service Hatzalah on March 23 while they were parked near a synagogue.Prosecutors said at a previous hearing that web searches for "how much do ambulances cost" and "how long does it take for police to (investigate) arsons" were found on Iqbal's phone after his arrest.A fifth defendant, 18-year-old Subhan Ahmed, pleaded not guilty to a charge of assisting an offender relating to the disposal of a vehicle used in the incident. He is expected to stand trial next year.Charred remains of ambulances belonging to Hatzola, a Jewish community organisation, which were set on fire in an incident that the police say is being treated as an antisemitic hate crime, in northwest London, Britain, March 23, 2026. (credit: REUTERS/HANNAH MCKAY)Prosecutors say the attack targeting Hatzalah, a not-for-profit volunteer service that works alongside Britain's National Health Service and primarily serves the Orthodox Jewish community, cost around £1 million ($1.36 million).Pro-Iran terror group claimed responsibility for series of arson attacksSeveral other attacks followed the March arson attack on the Hatzalah ambulances.A synagogue and a former synagogue were targeted, as was Persian-language media organization Iran International and a memorial wall dedicated to people killed in Iran, in a series of incidents in April and May.British police said at the time that they were investigating possible Iranian links to those arson attacks, with pro-Iranian terrorist group Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiyya (HAYI) claiming responsibility for the ambulance attack and some others.The SITE Intelligence ​website has said HAYI had been behind similar fires in Europe.Follow us on Google