Two Green Party candidates were arrested this morning on suspicion of stirring up racial hatred after allegedly posting anti-Semitic comments online.
The Metropolitan Police detained the two women aged 54 and 57 in London under section 19 of the Public Order Act before taking them into custody for questioning.
One post alleged to have been shared on Facebook by one of the suspects read: ‘Ramming a synagogue isn’t anti-Semitism. It’s revenge.’
A Met spokesperson told the Daily Mail: ‘Police have arrested two women, aged 57 and 54, on suspicion of stirring up racial hatred online, an offence under section 19 of the Public Order Act 1986. They remain in police custody.’
‘The arrests follow an investigation launched after concerns were reported to police on Tuesday, April 21 about anti-Semitic material that had been posted online.’
And a Green Party spokesperson said: ‘This now a police matter. We won’t be commenting at this stage.’
It comes after two Jewish men were stabbed yesterday in a terror attack in Golders Green, North London. A 45-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder.
Police across the UK have stepped up patrols in response to the double stabbing that saw two Jewish men – Shloime Rand, 34, and Moshe Ben Baila, 76 – taken to hospital.
More to follow
A poster for the Green Party is photographed this week before the local elections on May 7
