Anonymous Muslim Londoner’s gifts for Orthodox Jewish pupils
EXCLUSIVE: Heart-warming gesture of interfaith solidarity revealed as Hatzola volunteer tells Jewish News how neighbour brought kosher gifts for pupils whose school building was defaced
A member of the Muslim community in north London bought gifts for pupils of a Jewish school that had been vandalised with bright red paint.
The generous gesture came within days of the Hamas attacks in Israel as antisemitism began to rise across the world and included daubings at two Jewish orthodox schools in Stamford Hill.
Speaking to Jewish News, a Hatzola responder volunteer from Stamford Hill said the generous and life-affirming gesture left him stunned.
He said: “There was a knock on the door of our training room at the base. Security said there was someone outside. I went to the front gate and there was a very visibly Muslim man, with a beard. He had a Carmel shopping bag from our local grocery store.
“At first I thought perhaps Hatzola had saved his life, because sometimes people come and show their appreciation. But he started telling me that he’d read on the news that someone had gone and splashed red paint on the gates of some Jewish school. He didn’t know the address of the school so he was looking for someone who could give something to those girls.
“He was really distraught about it and he wanted to show his sympathy with the kids. So, he went to the shop, Sainsbury’s, he bought a bunch of flowers. And then he said he knew we only ate kosher, so he went to a kosher shop, Carmel, and he bought four trays of really nice chocolates. I think they cost around £12 each. He didn’t mention that, obviously. But he spent well over £50.
“He handed it all over and before I could even ask for his name, he jumped on his bike, and just biked off. I was left a bit stunned. It was a really nice feeling. I went back upstairs to my base and showed it all to my colleagues. It was obviously quite close to the attacks that had just happened. The pain was really strong then. It gave us a really good feeling to know there are still people in the world that care.”
If you know who this wonderful man is, please get in touch with Jewish News as we would love to thank him on behalf of the Jewish community.
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