LONDON: Antisemitic and Islamaphobic incidents have almost doubled in just over a week in London, police data showed on Friday, in the wake of the attack by Hamas militants on southern Israel nearly three weeks ago and subsequent bombardment by Israel of Gaza. There have been growing tensions in Britain and elsewhere since Hamas gunmen rampaged through Israeli towns and Israel besieged Gaza in response, with pro-Palestinian demos and vigils held by Jewish groups in solidarity with hostages, some of whom are British, who were taken by the militants. Commander Kyle Gordon said there had been 408 antisemitic incidents recorded in the British capital so far this month compared to 28 in the same period last year, while there had been 174 Islamophobic offenses compared to 65. In both cases the numbers were almost twice as high as those given a week ago. “My colleagues continue to ruthlessly deal with any acts of hate crime that they encounter,” Kyle told reporters. “Since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict, we have made 75 arrests linked to the conflict.” Last week, about 100,000 protesters took part in a march organized by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, and in the aftermath police faced criticism from some lawmakers for not being tougher over slogans shouted there. The US on Friday expanded its effort to cut off funding for Hamas, announcing a second round of sanctions against people and organizations linked to the group.The new sanctions highlight Iran’s role in providing financial, logistical and operational support to Hamas, the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said in a statement. They include a Hamas representative in Iran and members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard. The sanctions were announced as Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo traveled to London to shore up support from Britain, one of America’s closest allies, for the drive to squeeze off funding for Hamas, which both countries consider a terrorist organization. “Today’s action underscores the United States’ commitment to dismantling Hamas’s funding networks by deploying our counterterrorism sanctions authorities and working with our global partners to deny Hamas the ability to exploit the international financial system,” Adeyemo said. Among those targeted are Khaled Qaddoumi, described as a liaison between Hamas and the Iranian government; and Ali Morshed Shirazi and Mostafa Mohammad Khani, officials in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Qods Force who are accused of training and assisting Hamas fighters. The US also sanctioned a number of organizations, including the Iranian Bonyad Shahid, also known as the Martyrs Foundation. US officials say the group, which is affiliated with Palestinian Islamic Jihad, funnels millions of dollars through the Gaza-based Al-Ansar Charity Association for the families of militants. The practice “ultimately serves as a recruiting tool for terrorist activities,” the US said.