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Man arrested after children abused in antisemitic tirade

Woman in hijab widely praised for confronting man in the video

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A man has been arrested after a video emerged showing a Jewish family being subjected to abuse while travelling on the Tube.

The clip shows a man in a blue cap and hoodie standing close to a seated boy wearing a kippah and can be heard referring to the "synagogue of Satan" and reading, "I will make them come and worship before your feet."

The boy’s father can be heard telling his son: “Just ignore him”.

The abuser in the video can then be heard threatening another man who tries to intervene, before he is confronted by a woman wearing a hijab.

The Muslim woman has been named as Asma Shuweikh. She told PA she "wouldn't hesitate to do it again.

"I would have loved more people to come up and say something, because if everyone did, I do not think it would have escalated in the way that it did," she said.

She said when she saw what was happening she knew she "had to confront him".

"Being a mother-of-two, I know what it's like to be in that situation and I would want someone to help if I was in that situation," she said.

In a statement, the father of the child said: “We are extremely grateful to the Muslim lady wearing the headscarf, who was now know as Asma, who stepped in… I would like to meet Asma in person to thank her."

Commuter Chris Atkins, who recorded the incident, said: "It was the children that really got me and everyone else, he was just screaming at these children. It was horrific in every sense.”

A spokesman for Jewish security group Shomrim North West London said: "It is incidents like these which bring the issue of antisemitism into sharp focus. We urge any victims to come forward and we will support you in reporting these incidents to police, and provide you with the necessary support.

"We are very thankful to British Transport Police for taking swift action and a strong stance on investigating all forms of hate crime.

"Shomrim NW London applauds Asma and the gentleman who courageously confronted the abusive man and defended the Jewish family."

The suspect was held in Birmingham on Saturday night on suspicion of committing a racially aggravated public order offence and remains in custody.

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