British police said on Friday that officers were trying to contact Oscar-winning actress Helen Mirren and “review” video footage showing her being “subjected to anti-Semitic verbal abuse.”Footage of the incident, which the London Metropolitan Police said it believed took place last year in the British capital, was circulated online.The video shows someone recorded on camera approaching Mirren and her husband, then calling her an “evil Zionist” followed by an expletive, claiming that she “was very happy because the Palestinian homes were gone.”A police spokesman said: “We are aware of a video circulating online, showing a man and woman being subjected to anti-Semitic verbal abuse.”“Officers are currently reviewing the footage and are attempting to contact the victims to determine if they would like to report the incident,” he added.The actress was photographed while going out at night, crossing the street with her husband, director Taylor Hackford. In the video, a man filming the couple confronted her about her views on Israel and Palestine. The clip, which was widely circulated on Channel
“She was very happy that Palestinian homes were destroyed.”“You posted this post. You are an evil Zionist,” he said before walking away.While the exact date of the recording remains unclear, The Times reports that the footage is believed to be older and was originally shared in November.The force indicated that it had made more than 90 arrests for hate crimes since the end of March, amid the escalation of anti-Semitic incidents in Britain in recent years amid the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East.The Campaign Against Antisemitism group condemned the “horrific” abuse Mirren faced, describing the perpetrator as a “pro-Palestine thug.”
