Two girls arrested after Jewish woman robbed in Haringey

The Met said it was treating the robbery as a possible hate crime

Two girls have been arrested on suspicion of robbery after a Jewish woman was assaulted in a "possible hate crime" in Haringey, London.

The victim, 20, was approached by two girls on Rostrevor Avenue who assaulted her and stole her bag at about 16.30 GMT on 7 December, the Met said.

Officers arrested two girls aged 13 and 14 at about midday on Saturday on 9 December at an address in Haringey.

The Met recognised concerns the victim was targeted for being Jewish.

The victim was bruised and left "shaken" by the incident but did not need hospital treatment, the Met said.

CCTV images captured near the scene suggested the girls were wearing school uniform and detectives worked with schools officers to confirm their identity, the force said.

The two girls arrested remain in custody.

Det Sgt Asli Benson said: "This was a terrifying incident for the young woman who was attacked.

"Officers have been pursuing all available lines of inquiry since the incident and these arrests are a very positive development.

"The victim is from the orthodox Jewish community. It would have been obvious from her appearance that she was Jewish and there has been significant concern that she was targeted for that reason.

"In the current climate, when fears and uncertainty in the wider Jewish community are heightened following the terror attacks in Israel and the subsequent rise in antisemitic hate crime here in London, these concerns are entirely understandable.

"While we are keeping an open mind as to the motive behind the incident and will continue to explore all avenues, we are treating this as a possible hate crime."

Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail]