London Mayor Sadiq Khan faced a wave of intense backlash following his response to a suspected antisemitic arson attack that destroyed four ambulances.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Khan described the incident as a “cowardly attack” and said Londoners would not be “cowed by hatred.” He added that he was in contact with police, who were increasing patrols in the area.
“This is a cowardly attack on the Jewish community,” Khan wrote on X, while blocking replies. “I am in close contact with the police who are stepping up patrols in the area, and I urge anyone with information to come forward. Londoners will never be cowed by this kind of hatred and intimidation.”
His post triggered immediate condemnation from some journalists and politicians who argued his words rang hollow given his track record regarding anti-Israel demonstrations in London.
This is a cowardly attack on the Jewish community.
I am in close contact with the police who are stepping up patrols in the area, and I urge anyone with information to come forward.
Londoners will never be cowed by this kind of hatred and intimidation. https://t.co/KFCqHXToW0
— Sadiq Khan (@SadiqKhan) March 23, 2026
Author and journalist Melanie Phillips wrote: “This is cynical virtue signalling. You have supported two and a half years of hate marches on London streets chanting for the mass murder of Jews. You have never once called out this incitement, demonisation and lies against Israel and Zionists. The city you run is no longer a safe space for Jews. Own it.”
This is cynical virtue signalling. You have supported two and a half years of hate marches on London streets chanting for the mass murder of Jews. You have never once called out this incitement, demonisation and lies against Israel and Zionists. The city you run is no longer a… https://t.co/YeWNNSlKSw
— Melanie Phillips (@MelanieLatest) March 23, 2026
Conservative London Assembly Member Neil Garrett also criticized the mayor, pointing to a previous exchange at a public event. “At the last People’s Question Time, Mayor Khan spoke at length about the situation in Gaza without any reference to the events of 7th October 2023,” Garrett recalled, adding that when he raised the issue, Khan “opted to remain silent.”
At the last People's Question Time, Mayor Khan spoke at length about the situation in Gaza without any reference to the events of 7th October 2023. I intervened to point out his omission, he option to remain silent rather than offer even the most perfunctory nod.
— Neil Garratt AM (@NeilGarratt) March 23, 2026
There were others:
THIS is Sadiq Khan and Mark Rowley's London.
If you display a Swastika at an antisemitic hate march it "depends on the context".
But if a Jewish man wears a Star of David in public they get arrested and accused of "antagonising" antisemites.
Khan and Rowley should RESIGN NOW! pic.twitter.com/wiuh0reOby
— Lee Harris (@LeeHarris) March 23, 2026
Indeed. Whenever Jews are attacked (typically by Muslims), it is important to redouble our efforts to fight against Islamophobia. https://t.co/YxJRjn6tpH
— Gad Saad (@GadSaad) March 23, 2026
In October 2025, during Mayor’s Question Time, Assembly Member Susan Hall asked whether the phrase “from the river to the sea” is antisemitic.
“I don’t think it’s antisemitic. I think it’s all about context,” Khan responded. He described anti-Israel protests coinciding with the Yom Kippur synagogue attack as “inappropriate and insensitive,” but he refused to call them antisemitic, contending that would involve judging “individuals’ behavior.”
His stance has been disputed by political opponents.
Sir James Cleverly, the shadow communities secretary, told The Telegraph the phrase “calls for wiping the world’s only Jewish state from the map,” pointing out that denying its antisemitic meaning was “patently absurd.”
Alex Wilson, leader of Reform UK in the London Assembly, told GB News, “We all know what ‘from the river to the sea’ means; it means wiping out all Jews. We all know what ‘globalize the intifada’ means; it means murdering Jews on British streets. These are calls for death to Jews, but Sadiq is not prepared to admit this.”
Former government adviser on political violence Lord Walney echoed, “Anyone who thinks it is okay for people to chant that hateful phrase needs to consider what it is calling for Palestine to be free from,” he added. “They mean free from Jews.”
Khan has consistently maintained that it is not a politician’s role to tell the police which marches to ban. This position led to clashes with former Home Secretary Suella Braverman, who previously described the protests as “hate marches” and accused the mayor and the Metropolitan Police of applying “double standards.”
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