Angry anti-Israel activists widely shared an unblurred picture of a British Jewish child dressed up as an IDF soldier in Stamford Hill on Purim on Monday, with some social media users comparing the boy to a Nazi and calling for an investigation by counterterrorism police.
A Jewish boy was seen walking around Olinda Road mosque in Stamford Hill dressed as an IDF soldier carrying a toy assault rifle for Purim. pic.twitter.com/ncrRXhEtzb
— Dilly Hussain (@DillyHussain88) March 25, 2024
The picture of the boy wearing a mock IDF paratrooper uniform equipped with a toy rifle as part of the traditional Purim masquerade and carnival was shared by accounts with hundreds of thousands of followers.
"Jewish child walking around Olinda Road mosque in Stamford Hill, London, dressed as an 'IDF' member carrying an assault rifle," X account War Monitor said to its almost one million followers. "Disgusting and despicable behavior as usual from these people."
Dilly Hussain, deputy editor of the Muslim news blog "5 Pillars UK," shared the child's photo with his almost 100,000 followers.
The photo led to split reactions on social media
One X 200 thousand follower account posted the photo and demanded to know if it would be acceptable for Muslim children to dress as Hamas spokesperson Abu Obaida.
Author Yasir Hayat questioned if the UK Counterterrorism Police had to keep an eye on the child.
Critics attacked the sharing of the boy's photo, saying that it was doxing, providing the public with private information about an individual to facilitate their targeting for harassment. Others called on the London Metropolitan Police to take action to protect the child and that it was unacceptable to post pictures of children online without their parent's permission.
Stamford Hill is an area in London with a high concentration of Orthodox Jews.