Vandals have desecrated a Jewish memorial with raw meat in an apparent antisemitic attack.

Raw chicken and slabs of red meat were found covering the drinking fountain in Whitechapel, east London.

The memorial was paid for by Jewish residents to honour King Edward VII in the early 20th century.

The inscription on the sculpture reads: “In grateful and loyal memory of Edward VII, Rex et Imperator, Erected by subscriptions raised by Jewish inhabitants of East London, 1911.”

A woman who spotted it on the way to work took pictures and posted them on Twitter to alert the council to the incident on Thursday morning.

Tower Hamlets Borough police said they were aware of the incident but do not believe it to be maliciously or religiously motivated.

Tower Hamlets Council said it would arrange for the memorial to be cleaned.