A peer has condemned police for ‘misunderstanding’ an art exhibition accused of showing Jews as ‘blood-soaked, baby eating demons’ after officers said no laws had been broken.

Lord Ian Austin, who sits as an independent in the House of Lords, lambasted Kent Police over its decision not to take any further action against Matthew Collings and his exhibition, Drawings Against Genocide – which the peer described as ‘a shocking display of grotesque anti-Jewish hatred.’

The show, staged at Joseph Wales Studios, in Margate, features childlike drawings of grinning IDF soldiers standing over skulls and blood, while another depicts figures holding a blood-soaked Star of David flag.

One image portrays two auctioneers linked to Sotheby’s, which is owned by French-Israeli billionaire Patrick Drahi, devouring babies with blood dripping from their mouths.

Another work shows Lisa Nandy alongside cash and an Israeli flag, with speech bubbles stating: ‘I am a Zionist’ and ‘I am paid by Israel‘. 

Racism advocates say the art draws on deeply offensive antisemitic stereotypes, prompting wide outrage. 

Actress Tracy-Ann Oberman called the images ‘disgusting’, historian Simon Schama said they were ‘appalling’, while politician and journalist Lord Michael Gove said the exhibition was ‘truly terrible’. 

Such has been the controversy that earlier this week Thanet District Council distanced itself from the event and apologised for ‘any distress or offence that has been caused’.

But Kent Police said the artwork ‘did not meet the legal threshold’ for a criminal offence and neither did officers find any evidence of content that was ‘directly abusive or insulting toward Jewish people’.

The artist has defended his work as being a commentary on Zionism rather than being antisemitic – though critics were swift to point out a poster positioned at the entrance states: ‘Antisemitic art exhibition this way’.

Lord Austin said it was ‘alarming’ that Kent Police had considered the artwork to be ‘perfectly fine’ given its graphic content.

Speaking to Daily Mail, he said: ‘It shows a quite remarkable Keystone Cops level of misunderstanding not to see this so-called art exhibition for what it really is, which is a shocking display of grotesque anti-Jewish hatred. 

‘Did the officers miss that it even has a poster up at the entrance saying “antisemitic art exhibition this way”? 

‘These child-like drawings go far beyond legitimate criticism of the government of Israel, they depict British Jews as evil baby killers and draw upon well-known tropes about Jews drinking blood and secretly running the world. 

‘It really is alarming that Kent Police thinks this is perfectly fine. I can’t imagine for a second that police officers would come to the same conclusion about an art exhibition that so cruelly attacked any other race or religion.’ 

Alex Hearn from Labour Against Antisemitism said: ‘That a police force believes depicting Jews as manipulating the media and eating babies alive are “criticism of Israel”, shows how urgently intervention is needed. 

‘Blood-soaked hate scrawls about Jews featuring swastikas and ‘the lobby’ controlling the government are not legitimate politics. The police need to do better, and proper training is needed.’ 

In a response provided to an individual who formally complained about the exhibition, and seen by Daily Mail, Kent Police said there had been ‘no indication of an intent by the artist to stir up racial or religious hatred.’

The force had also considered whether the artwork met the criteria for a non-crime hate incident, but this too did not meet the threshold.

‘This is because the content is political in nature, focuses on a nation state rather than a protected group, and is part of artistic expression, which is afforded protection under freedom of expression laws.’

It added: ‘There is no information to suggest hostility toward Jewish people as a group, nor any indication of risk of harm.’

Earlier this week, writer Zoe Strimpel described feeling shaken after she was allegedly shouted at by the artist and surrounded by others after she challenged the pieces on display.

She wrote: ‘My cheeks are red. I am shaking. I popped into an exhibition that turned out to be the insane fever dream of an artist called Matthew Collings: ‘Drawings Against Genocide.’

Detailing the exchange, she said: ‘[Collings] was instantly aggressive. As soon as I started to say I was shocked and threatened by what I was seeing because it was Nazi imagery, the artist started yelling at me that I didn’t mean anything I was saying.’

She added: ‘Anytime I tried to speak (calmly) he said: “you don’t mean any of what you said”, you’re just repeating “hasbarah talking points” because “you’re defending a genocide”. On and on he yelled, in my face.’

According to her account, the situation deteriorated rapidly: ‘The crowd began booing and closing in around me, making to shoo me out. I said: “fine, get the Jew out” and he yelled more across the room at me, repeatedly jeering “call the police, go ahead, call the police”.’

Collings later hit back online, dismissing the backlash as ‘Zionist nonsense’.

He wrote: ‘Someone else in the room said “I’m a Jew and I don’t feel unsafe”. I would say my feeling personally is that this Zionist nonsense of making all these false allegations so anti-Semitism can be conflated with anti-Zionism has run out of effectiveness.’

Ms Strimpel made a formal complaint to police following the incident and was told that following an investigation ‘no criminal offences were identified.’