Attacks on Jewish Targets in Europe Suggest Hybrid Warfare

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Attacks on Jewish Targets in Europe Suggest Hybrid Warfare

Officials are investigating similar attacks across Europe, all claimed by a shadowy Islamist group that may be using low-cost, unsophisticated methods to sow fear in Jewish communities.

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An arson attack in the Golders Green neighborhood of London in March destroyed four ambulances run by a Jewish organization.

Credit...

Henry Nicholls/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

By

Megan Specia

and

Koba Ryckewaert

Megan Specia reported from London and Koba Ryckewaert from Antwerp and Brussels.

April 30, 2026,

5:18 a.m. ET

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Just before midnight on March 23, an empty car was set alight in the Jewish district of Antwerp, Belgium, breaking the quiet of the night.

The police quickly arrested two teenagers

. Several hours later, blurry footage appeared online of the incident, showing one person pouring liquid on a car and a second person lighting it on fire.

In the video, a group that was unknown just a few months ago claims responsibility. The group, which calls itself Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiyya, has also taken responsibility for a series of other attacks across Europe, including one on Wednesday when

two people were stabbed

in a Jewish area of London.

Now, counterterrorism officials say they are investigating whether the group has ties to Iran — and whether these criminal acts are the latest iteration of asymmetrical warfare by Iran or another malign actor, all using low-cost, unsophisticated methods to sow fear in Jewish communities across Europe.

Those accused of carrying out the attacks did not appear to have allegiance to an extremist cause and were likely recruited to act with the promise of money, law enforcement authorities and lawyers say.

Chantal Van den Bosch, the lawyer for one of the teenagers charged in the Antwerp incident, said in an interview that her client had “no idea” the arson would be filmed and shared online, and said he had taken part to make “quick cash.”

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