London police in protective clothing are investigating an incident that took place near the Israeli embassy on Friday.
Officers at the embassy in Kensington Gardens in the British capital said they were examining a number of “discarded items” at the scene and urged people to avoid the area.
Few other details of the incident have been released to the public, but counter-terrorism police are understood to be investigating a video shared online overnight in which a group claimed to have targeted the embassy with drones.
The video was apparently posted by Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (Hayi), a group accused of having ties to Iran but whose existence was not known of before the US-Israeli war on that country.
The video shows a target over an image of the Israeli embassy, as well as people in hazmat suits flying drones, which they claim contain “dangerous substances”.
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While the embassy has not suffered an attack, detectives said they were carrying out inquiries to determine the authenticity of the video and to identify any potential link to the discarded items found.
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“We do not believe there to be any increased public safety risk at this stage, but we would urge people to avoid the area while officers carry out their work. There are cordons in place and there is no public access to the gardens and the surrounding area,” the Metropolitan Police said in a statement.
“Counter Terrorism Policing London are aware of a video shared online overnight in which a group claim to have targeted the nearby embassy of Israel with drones carrying dangerous substances.
“While we can confirm that the embassy has not been attacked, we are carrying out urgent inquiries to determine the authenticity of the video and to identify any potential link between it and the items discarded in Kensington Gardens.”
Hayi has reportedly claimed responsibility for a range of attacks across Europe targeting Jewish and Israeli institutions.
However, analysts have questioned the authenticity of the group and its links to Iran, noting a number of inconsistencies in messaging and credibility.