London records big spike in antisemitic, Islamophobic hate crimes amid Israel conflict
London (PTI): The UK capital has registered a big spike in antisemitic and Islamophobic hate crimes since the Israel-Gaza conflict broke out, Scotland Yard data revealed on Friday as the police force sought to reassure communities of additional force deployment to protect against such incidents in London.
According to the Metropolitan Police figures, between October 1 and 18 there were 218 antisemitic offences compared to 15 in the same period last year. During the same period, Islamophobic offences registered a spike from 42 to 101. These represent percentage rises of 1,353 per cent and 140 per cent respectively.
"The Met has been working closely with representatives from London's Jewish and Muslim communities since the attacks in Israel," the Met Police said in a statement.
"Officers have been deployed to provide reassurance and to investigate offences in the vicinity of faith schools, places of worship and in those communities where we know the levels of concern are highest. So far officers have visited 445 schools and 1,930 places of worship. Those visits will continue," the statement said.
The UK's largest police force said that so far its officers have made 21 arrests for hate crime offences in the community. For example, this week they arrested a man on suspicion of defacing posters of missing Israelis in Camden and another man in relation to 10 incidents of Islamophobic graffiti on bus stops. Further arrests were also made at protests and demonstrations, held in support of Israelis or Palestinians.
"While there have been pockets of disorder and some instances of hate speech, the majority of the protest activity has been lawful and has taken place without incident. The largest demonstration seen so far took place last Saturday. Officers made 15 arrests for a variety of offences," the Met Police said.
The force is expecting another big demonstration in central London on Saturday, organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, and said that over 1,000 officers will be deployed to police the event. They include public order trained officers, roads policing teams, mounted units, dog units and police staff who are providing essential support.
"We will police this demonstration impartially, protecting the right to protest while intervening or gathering evidence for subsequent investigation where offences take place. We will not stand by if we see examples of hate crime taking place. We will intervene," the Met Police said.
Under the Public Order Act, the Met Police has banned protesters from assembling outside of the Israeli embassy in London and revealed that counter-terrorism officers would be monitoring for anyone supporting Hamas or Hezbollah, both of which are banned under the UK's terror laws.
"It is important to remember that while supporting the Palestinian cause or criticising Israel is not, in itself, unlawful, any support for a proscribed organisation such as Hamas or Hezbollah is unlawful. Anyone wearing, carrying or otherwise displaying symbols that are supportive of a proscribed organisation can be arrested. The same is true for chanting or slogans," the police warned.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
