Newspaper headlines: 'PM vows to act' and 'Brace for more terror attacks'

Key developments are emerging from the global stage. 'PM vows to act' and 'Brace for more terror attacks' 10 minutes ago Share Save Add as preferred on Google The main story for many of the papers continues to be the knife attack in Golders Green on Wednesday. The Guardian has focused on Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer's pledge to do "everything in our power to stamp this hatred out", after he met emergency workers and community leaders near the scene of the attack. The paper reports that the terrorism threat level in the UK has now been raised to "severe" by the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre.

"Brace for more terror attacks", warns the Sun, which says increasing the national threat level from "substantial" to "severe" equates to the "biggest threat for five years". An attack is considered "highly likely" in the next six months, the government has said. The Times notes that the last time the terror threat was at this level was more than four years ago, after the 2021 bombing outside Liverpool Women's Hospital and the murder of Conservative MP Sir David Amess.

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Laurence Taylor, head of counter-terrorism policing, has asked the public to remain "alert and not alarmed", the paper says. "The rise of anti-semitism" is emblazoned on the front page of the Daily Mirror, which quotes Sir Keir as declaring "an attack on our Jewish community is an attack on all of us". The paper says the suspect, 45-year-old Essa Suleiman, was referred into the government counter-terrorism Prevent programme in 2020.

"Knife suspect was investigated for extremist views" says the Independent, similarly making note of Suleiman's referral to Prevent. A photograph of people protesting in Golders Green on Thursday leads the paper, as people call on the government for more action on antisemitism in the UK. The Metropolitan Police commissioner has accused Green Party leader Zack Polanksi of "stoking tensions" over the Golders Green attack, according to the Telegraph.

It reports that Sir Mark Rowley has taken the "unusual step" of writing to Polanski and warning him of the "chilling effect" his rhetoric could have, after he reshared a post on X that criticised police officers for "repeatedly and violently kicking a mentally ill man in the head when he was already incapacitated by a Taser". The front page of the Daily Express is dedicated to quote from Jewish war hero Mervyn Kersh, 101, who says antisemitism "reveals diseased minds and corrupt societies". The Financial Times says that both the European Central Bank and the Bank of England have warned they may need to raise interest rates in coming months, as they grapple with the "energy shock" triggered by war in the Middle East.

The paper reports that oil prices on Thursday surged past $126 (£92) a barrel for the first time since 28 February, when war began. Former Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has given an exclusive interview to the i Paper, where she says "more and more young people are feeling hopeless" amid a system that feels "rigged against them".

The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.