King Charles has become the patron of the Community Security Trust (CST) after four ambulances operated by a fellow Jewish charity were firebombed yesterday.
CST announced that King Charles III had accepted its invitation to become a charity patron, said to be its first, after its annual dinner last night.
This came hours after an arson attack in Golders Green, north London, in which four ambulances owned by Jewish charity Hatzola Northwest Trust were destroyed next to a synagogue.
CST, which monitors antisemitism in the UK and assists victims, said that it was honoured by the king’s patronage amid a troubling socio-political climate.
“His majesty’s longstanding commitment to promoting tolerance, inclusion and interfaith understanding aligns closely with CST’s mission to protect British Jews,” the charity said in a statement.
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood, the keynote speaker, health secretary Wes Streeting and Met Police commissioner Mark Rowley were among 1,200 guests at the event last night.
Mahmood condemned the arson attack, which is being investigated by counter terrorism police, and praised the work of CST and its volunteers.
CST chief executive Mark Gardner told the audience: “Despite it all, actually because of it all, CST has never been stronger or more determined than we are right now.”
Replacement ambulances will be provided on loan from the London Ambulance Service and Streeting confirmed the government will cover the cost of the destroyed vehicles.
