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| Chaim Hochhauser meets with Muslim imams |
Muslim imams in London have managed to gain sympathy from the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community as their vigilante patrol group vowed to protect Muslim mosques against attacks.
The so-called “Jewish police force” has offered Jewish protection for mosques in Hackney, United Kingdom following a series of violent attacks on mosques.
Shomrim, a Jewish uniformed patrol in Stamford Hill, of which members are trained by the London police, patrol the area regularly and are on the lookout for anti-Semitic hate crimes or general disorder in the neighborhood.
The volunteer group, similar to a neighborhood watch, are trained to track and apprehend suspects until the police arrive. They run a 24-hour hotline for those in the area to report attacks.
The group was started by ultra-Orthodox Jewish New Yorkers angry with long police response time after the crimes were reported.
Mosque Elders met this weekend with Shomrim in the Cazenove Road Mosque and community center to discuss cooperation between the two communities.
The leader of the Shomrim, Chaim Hochhauser, said he gave Muslims the Shomrim phone number so they can call in the time of need. He also said that this is the beginning of a long friendly relationship between ultra-Orthodox Jews in London and the Muslim community.
“Shomrim patrol members will now check on local mosques to see if everything is alright,” Hochhauser said.