‘He could have taken my life’: Golders Green victim speaks from hospital after attack

One of the victims of the Golders Green stabbing has described the moment he was attacked as he walked through the street, saying he did not realise he had been stabbed until he ran for safety.

Shlomie Rand, 34, spoke while recovering in hospital following Wednesday’s knife attack in north-west London, in which two Jewish men were injured.

A 45-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after police said he allegedly ran through the area armed with a knife before being detained and tasered.

Speaking to Sky News by phone from the hospital, Rand said he was walking normally through the area and speaking on the phone when the attacker suddenly came towards him.

“I was walking in the street, regular, comfortable, I was on the phone,” he said.

“This fellow came towards me, running towards me, and he just stabbed me in my chest.”

Rand said he managed to turn and escape after the attack.

“I turned back, and I managed to escape, so it was only one stab,” he said.

“Thank God. He could have taken my life, but thank God I’m here. I had a major miracle.”

Rand said he had no warning before the assault took place.

“I didn’t know at that moment that I was stabbed,” he said.

“I ran to take shelter. That’s when I noticed that I was bleeding.”

Rand said he suffered a stab wound to the chest, which affected his lungs.

“I was stabbed in my chest. It touched my lungs,” he said.

He added that his oxygen levels had initially dropped but were now improving.

Emergency responders from Hatzola, alongside London Ambulance Service crews, treated him at the scene before taking him to hospital.

Rand praised the medics who cared for him.

“They were fabulous,” he said.

“They gave me the necessary treatment, covering up the wounds and giving me oxygen.

“They made sure my health was taken care of.”

Speaking about the wider atmosphere in London, Rand suggested rhetoric surrounding Jews and the Middle East was contributing to fear within the community.

“It’s time to stop ignoring what’s happening on the streets of London,” he said.

“Change the tone, the way people speak about our people.

“What gets discussed in government and parliament gets reflected in the media.”

Rand said he believed wider hostility towards Jews was having consequences closer to home.

“Most Jewish people living in England are not Israeli citizens whatsoever,” he said.

“But people link what’s going on in the Middle East to Jewish people.

“The streets of London are not safe.”

He also praised counter-terror police officers who visited him in hospital following the attack.

“But if this could have been done prior, this might have been prevented.”

Rand said doctors expected him to make a full recovery, and he hoped to leave the hospital within days.

Police continue to investigate the attack, which is being led by Counter Terrorism Policing.

The Crown Prosecution Service has now authorised three charges of attempted murder against the 45-year-old suspect, Essa Suleiman.

The charges relate to the stabbing of two men in Golders Green on Wednesday, 29 April, as well as an alleged attack on another man at a separate location on the same day.

The second victim, 76-year-old Moshe Shine, remains in a stable condition in the hospital.