Mayor of Bath, England, resigns after amplifying idea that Jewish ambulance arson was a ‘false flag’ attack
Accusations that antisemitic and anti-Israel incidents are false flags have surged as such incidents have grown more commonplace.
A bird’s eye view of the ancient Roman city of Bath, England. (Matt Cardy/Getty Images)
(JTA) — The mayor of Bath, in southwestern England, resigned from his post Monday after drawing criticism for amplifying the idea that the London arson of ambulances owned by a Jewish emergency service was a “false flag” attack.
“I have been made aware that I have reposted or replied to some posts which have never aligned to my values and beliefs, and which are abhorrent,” Bharat Pankhania said in a statement issued last week, prior to his resignation from the honorary role. “I am incredibly apologetic that I have not lived up to the standards I set myself. I have of course deleted them, and I wish to apologise unreservedly.”
Days after the Mar. 23 torching of four Hatzola ambulances in London’s Jewish neighborhood of Golders Green, Pankhania shared comments and posts on X that suggested the fires were set by members of the Jewish community and an instance of insurance fraud, multiple British outlets reported. Law enforcement has deemed the fires an antisemitic attack.
A “false flag” operation is staged to look like an attack in order to garner sympathy for the victim or attribute blame to another party. Accusations that antisemitic and anti-Israel incidents are false flags have surged as such incidents have grown more commonplace.
An Anti-Defamation League survey found in January 2025 that one in four Americans believed recent attacks on Jews were false flags; an analysis by the Blue Square Alliance Against Hate released last week suggested that the rate of false-flag allegations around antisemitic incidents had risen since.
After an investigation, the local branch of Pankhania’s political party, the Liberal Democrats, suspended him last week. On Monday, the group said he had resigned from both the mayoralty and the political group.
“Cllr Pankhania again apologised for his interactions on X, and reiterated that he has spent his life working with all communities, whilst acknowledging the hurt he had caused. In resigning, Cllr Pankhania is taking clear personal responsibility for his actions,” the group said.
“As a group and as a party, we reject discrimination wherever it occurs and reiterate our stance against antisemitism,” it added.
In Richmond, California, the Jewish community called for the resignation of Mayor Eduardo Martinez after he made comments calling last December’s mass shooting at a Hanukkah event in Bondi Beach a “false flag.” Martinez apologized for his comments shortly after and remains in office.
Police in London arrested two men in connection with the ambulance arson. The men have since been released on bail, and their identities have not been made public.
A group previously unknown to investigators, calling itself Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya, has claimed responsibility for the attack, in addition to a number of other attacks throughout Europe.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
