Officers are stepping up patrols after a Rabbi was attacked outside a synagogue and left hospitalised.
Essex Police has called the incident a hate crime but are not linking it to heightened tensions in the Middle East where violence rages on between Israel and Palestine.
Detectives believe two teenagers stepped out in front of the Rabbi’s car while he was driving.
The pair, thought to be aged 15 and 18, then shouted at the Rabbi, insulted his religion and damaged his car.
When the man got out to confront them, he was attacked, robbed of his phone and taken to hospital.
Officers in the area are working to reassure Jewish communities and leaders, who are currently celebrating Shavuot.
Following a separate incident on Sunday, Met Police officers have stepped up patrols in north London where antisemitic language was shouted from a car covered in Palestinian flags in Finchley.
Cllr Jas Athwal, leader of Redbridge Council, labelled the incident in Chigwell as a “cowardly attack.”
In a statement on Twitter, he said: “Essex Police have confirmed they are treating today’s attack on Rabbi Rafi as an antisemitic hate crime.
Support has been pouring in from the Jewish community and local authorities.
Moshe Freedman, Rabbi of New West End Synagogue, asked people to pray for his “dear friend and colleague” following the attack.
Responding to the incident, Rabbi Herschel Gluck told PA news agency: “Whenever a person is attacked like this, it touches me deeply.
“The person themselves, their families, their congregation and their friends are all affected by this.
“Even though it is an individual, it has much broader and wider ramifications.”
Both teenagers were described as being of Asian ethnicity.
One of the boys is believed to be around 5ft 9in, wore his hair in an Afro-style and was wearing a black jacket.
The other was described as being 5ft 7in and was wearing a black jacket and grey tracksuit bottoms.
An Essex Police spokesperson said: “We know that this incident may be concerning for those in the local area, and we are working quickly to identify those responsible and to liaise with community leaders for any further support for those impacted.”
