UK police rule swastika sent to Jewish students as non-crime hate incident
Police in Cambridgeshire, UK, have ruled out criminal charges after a man sent a Nazi swastika image to Jewish students, marking it as a non-crime hate incident (NCHI). According to a report by 'The Telegraph', the suspect sent an image combining the Star of David with the Nazi swastika to the Union of Jewish Students (UJS), accompanied by a caption reading, “The irony of becoming what you once hated.”
The individual also wrote that there was "nothing endangering Jewish students," accusing the UJS of "exploiting them" to push what he called "pro-genocide propaganda." Despite the anti-Semitic nature of the message, Cambridgeshire police determined that the incident did not meet the threshold for a criminal offense.
The incident was classified as a non-crime hate incident (NCHI), a designation under UK law for behaviour that does not meet the legal criteria for a criminal offense but is still considered hate-related. Alex Hearn, co-director of Labour Against Antisemitism, criticized this decision, pointing out that similar incidents, including one involving offensive online messages in October, were also classified as non-criminal. Hearn argued that a swastika image targeting Jewish students should clearly be considered grossly offensive.
This is not the first time authorities in the UK have faced scrutiny for their handling of anti-Semitic incidents. In April, a protester displaying a swastika at a Pro-Palestinian march in London was arrested, though controversy arose when a Metropolitan Police officer suggested the sign's meaning needed to be considered in context.
The UK has seen an uptick in anti-Semitic incidents in recent months, including offensive signs and messages at protests, prompting concerns over the enforcement of laws protecting Jewish communities from hate speech.