In a statement on Tuesday evening,  police  said they had been called to a report of "a domestic incident" in Golders Green Road around noon and followed a man driving away in a vehicle.

When he stopped close to a synagogue in The Riding, they put in place a protective cordon. The man was then believed to have "set fire to an object while officers were engaging with him".

Although he ran from the scene, he was quickly detained around 2pm and taken into custody.

No member of the public or police was reported to have been injured and the incident is not "believed to be terrorism-related", police said. Enquiries continue.

Superintendent Louis Smith, from the Met’s North West Command Unit, said: “I know this will have been a very visible and frightening incident for the local community, but please know my officers will be out in the area.

“Do talk to them if you have any concerns, we are here to listen and reassure. We will work out what happened as we continue to investigate but for the moment this looks like a self-contained incident."

Local councillor Alex Prager had earlier tweeted that the incident "appears to have involved a molotov cocktail next to a synagogue".