To think we should avoid London right now?

[StayorgoLDN]

Due to visit London in the next few weeks.

Anxious with Palestinian protests and so forth in the news. I don’t want to be near that with young children, and worried that it may escalate to some sort of attack.

We are not Jews, but presuming as the U.K. is supporting Israel that we’ll all be fair game ie there might be an attack/bomb somewhere prominent to send a message to gov.

Have been in London during terrorist attacks before and I’d rather avoid.

AIBU to consider rescheduling our family trip to next year?

I was a very young child in London in the late 80s early 90s when the IRA were still around. I survived.

Why on earth would you not have survived the IRA?!

I’d honestly feel totally fine with anything, not so much worried about High St Ken but aware it would be manic in the actual station. It’s not any further to use alternative stations, but the tune in general is fine. That station is just crowded at anytime and will be a meeting point. It gets crowded and overcrowded at the best of times and I dislike it. Maybe I’m already biased. It’s just a risk of noise and stess

The IRA killed around 600 civilians during the Troubles.

Hmmmm. You are not Jewish and yet feel like you’re going to get attacked if you go to London. Why?

You need to do what you need to do. I live in zone 3 and am off into central London tonight. I work in central London. I was a student here during the IRA years, lost one friend in 9/11 (in a conference in the twin towers) and one friend on a bus in 7/7. I remember leaving a party in central London on the night of the London Bridge bombs as I thought the tubes would stop.

We carried on life as normal otherwise. I am fairly calm about it all.

I live very near a Jewish area and have Jewish friends and colleagues. Some have kids at Jewish schools and nurseries who are feeling understandably anxious. It’s a horrid feeling. Like my Muslim cousins who wear headscarves got so much abuse after 9/11 etc. People can be vile.

Bur my close Jewish colleague still is coming to work in central London as she told me that it stops her obsessively checking the news. And it distracts her from worrying about her young brother in the Israeli army right now.

It is a personal decision. Do what you have to do to feel safe.

OP, if it helps there is an increased police presence.

@duchiebun because they were bombing London a fair bit? I know people who were killed and injured by the IRA in London.

I won't bother to explain as my meaning has gone over your head.

I was a very young child in London in the late 80s early 90s when the IRA were still around. I survived.

I was a young child at about the same time. Not in London, but in places where the risk of attack was actually higher. I survived, clearly, since I am typing this. My neighbour was blown to pieces in front of his family. So me not being harmed was in no way an indication of the general level of risk.

@MasterBeth in London?

I’m a Londoner with Irish family who lived in Belfast during the Troubles so my risk level had a little more perspective….

I work in London. TBH these days terrorism can occur anywhere. London is quite well policed. It is highly likely that terrorists would look at targets in other urban centres. My attitude is always to be careful but not to change my plans or lifestyle radically. If we do this terrorism wins.

Again my meaning has gone over your head.

I meant when we were children there was a far bigger threat. Proper organised, armed and funded terrorism. The majority of people survived living in London through the IRA.

Therefore the OP shouldn't concern herself with this.

I am am Londoner who lived and worked in London through numerous terrorist attacks (my office at the time was oppostite Edgeware Road tube station), protests and riots.

London is a big place and I am in central London right now - it is calm and fine. I was at a meeting just off Whitechapel high st on Wednesday and things were fine.

That said I do not want to diminish the impact of all this right now on Jewish Londoners - it is horrific people should feel so unsafe in their own city.

@ShellySarah no explain to a Londoner who also “survived” 🙄

Around 50 were killed in London.

No, I try to avoid London like the plague. It's dirty, grimy and far too crowded. I've been once in the last decade and that was enough. Would die happy enough if I never went again.

I was there on the day of the bus bombings (how unlucky can you be, I only go there once a decade or so!) - luckily nowhere near the bombs, but there was chaos throughout the city. Huge numbers of scared people unable to get any transport out, unable to book hotel rooms for the night, literally having to walk miles, with no idea where to go, shops, cafes etc all closed, so not even anywhere to go for a sit down and drink. No information/guidance about what to do. No officials able to help. It was a nightmare.

My goodness. London is hardly caught up in the horrific violence in the Middle East. London is no more in danger than any other UK cities.

What about people who live in London? Should we not be leaving our homes?

Unless by London you mean places like Oxford Street, Leicester Square or similar - that’s not London that’s just a tourist trap. Go to the South Bank (not the awful bit near the London eye) or Greenwich, or Richmond Park, Kew Gardens, or anywhere that isn’t those mad “West End” places and you’ll be fine. Not because I think there’s massively likely to be any violence in those places but they’re awful an, and that’s where the protests were.

I was very close to being involved in 7/7 myself so not saying it isn’t scary, but you’d be cutting out much of the UK if you avoided anywhere where anything bad had ever happened.

I'm a Jew in London. Our community is devastated beyond words, but it does not feel any different on the ground today than it did a week ago. I'm still taking the tube, going to work, taking my daughter to school.

As someone whose eldest brother was caught up in the July 7 bombings many years ago,I fully understand your fear.
He survived by being in the 2nd carriage up from the blast , showered in debris but he and his wife were unhurt. I remember the awful gut churning wait of several hours to find out he was OK, we had known he was on one of the trains involved.
Since then I've been scared of flying ( funny as eldest brother retired fast jet pilot) never been keen to be honest but absolutely hate flying now ,to the extent I actually got of a flight to Sweden before take off.
We have these fears for a reason,it's called self preservation. In the past I would have told you the likelihood of anything happening to you is very small, and I do think that security around tourist areas and public transport will be high, however as so many armed police have handed in their guns ,security will not be full unless the army is drafted in. There is of cause the additional fact that the Met seem more concerned about social causes than upholding the law,all a terrorist would have to do is chuck on a Just Stop Oil t-shirt and Bobs your uncle,police escort anywhere you like.

Also not meaning to diminish the fears of Jewish Londoners or indeed Londoners from the Middle East, who all must be warey of reprisals. The sad fact is that Jewish schools in this country have high security at all times, which tells you something (something very sad).

I honestly don't know OP. Israel have given Gaza residents 24 hours to leave, which is an impossible task, IDF have their army poised to enter Gaza. Who knows how this well end, so tensions could be high.

What about those of us who live and work here? Do you think we should evacuate?

@MasterBeth civilians?

I’m so sorry. It must be absolutely horrific, and devastating for your community.