The Metropolitan Police have ruled that an imam’s sermon calling for the destruction of Jewish homes is not a hate crime.

A preacher on one mosque in East London told supporters to “curse the Jews” and “break their word” just two weeks after the Hamas massacre in southern Israel last year, it was reported.

He said: “Oh Allah, curse the Jews and the Children of Israel. Oh Allah, curse the infidels and the polytheists.

“Oh Allah, break their words, shake their feet, scatter and tear apart their unity and destroy their houses and destroy their homes.”

Police vowed to investigate the speech after footage of the sermon by an unnamed imam was broadcast in late 2023 as part of an investigation into antisemitic hatred speeches in British mosques.

After reviewing the footage, the Met concluded that “it does not meet the threshold of a crime,” according to the Jewish Chronicle.

But after outrage at X, the force said it would urgently review its decision.

It wrote: “We acknowledge the significant concerns surrounding our decision and we will review this outcome as soon as possible.”

After reviewing the case, the Met said it had sent a file to the CPS in October.

Mosque in Redbridge

A spokesman said: “Last October we became aware of a video on social media which showed part of a sermon delivered at a mosque in Redbridge.

“We know many people found the content upsetting and our specialists worked closely with the prosecution to assess the video.

“The whole sermon, including the wording, context and narrative was reviewed and at this stage it was concluded that it did not meet the threshold of an offence.

“Following further concerns raised with us, a decision was taken in May this year to review the case and it was re-opened. A number of further investigations were carried out.

“A file was sent to the CPS in October, and we await their decision.”

Referring to the Met’s decision not to label the sermon as a hate crime, the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) said: “This is another bad decision by the police in a long series of such decisions over the past year, and it is Britain’s Jews who are suffering the consequences.

“Our lawyers are exploring further options, and there is also an outstanding complaint about this incident with the Charity Commission. We hope the regulator shows more sense than the Met.

The Jewish group Community Security Trust said many would “struggle to understand” the decision.

A spokesman added: “Many people in the Jewish community and beyond will struggle to understand why it is not possible to prosecute this type of hate speech”.