Met Police officer called Al Jazeera journalist 'dog' and 'donkey'

Met Police officer called Al Jazeera journalist 'dog' and 'donkey' Imran Mulla on Thu, 03/26/2026 - 13:53 David Soffer, part of a crowd that surrounded an Al Jazeera film crew in Golders Green, has been revealed to be a special constable Special Constable David Soffer filmed in a crowd that surrounded an Al Jazeera film crew in Golders Green (Screengrab/X/MEE) Off An off-duty Metropolitan Police officer called a Palestinian journalist for Al Jazeera a "dog" and "donkey" in an "intimidating" encounter this week, it has emerged. Special Constable David Soffer was filmed among a crowd that surrounded an Al Jazeera film crew in Golders Green in London on Monday. Al Jazeera was reporting on that morning's arson attack on ambulances owned by a Jewish charity, which is being investigated by police as an antisemitic hate crime. Footage of a group of men surrounding the Al Jazeera film crew near the scene circulated online later that day. Declassified UK reported on Thursday that one man seen insulting a journalist was Soffer, who was then off-duty and wearing a grey hoodie. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); The police officer was filmed calling the reporter a "dog" and "donkey" in Arabic. He told him to "go back to Qatar" and said "get out of here, you donkey". A spokesperson for the Met Police said: "We are aware that an off duty serving Met officer was involved in the altercation. The matter has been referred to the Department of Professional Standards for assessment." Ashab al-Yamin: The obscure new group claiming Jewish ambulance attack Read More » Soffer, who also runs a reputation management company, appears to have removed his Met Police role from his LinkedIn account. The Met spokesperson told Middle East Eye: "Freedom of the press is important and journalists must be able to do their job without being subject to intimidation or harassment. "Officers did intervene but we recognise that there was an extended period where the journalists were put in a difficult situation which led them to leave the area." The spokesperson added: "Officers on duty in the area have been asked to be alert to any similar altercations in the coming days. "We will be reviewing the footage to identify whether any offences were committed." Two British men were arrested on Wednesday in connection with the ambulance arson attack and released on Thursday on bail while the investigation continues. UK Politics News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0