A Jewish couple and their young daughter were subjected to a torrent of abuse as they left a service to mark Holocaust Memorial Day at the weekend.

Lyndsey and Michael Kramer had attended the service at Luton Town Hall on Sunday to remember those killed in Nazi Germany during the Second World War, and others who have suffered around the world.

But as they left the building with their seven-year-old daughter they were targeted by a group of 12 or 15 men of Asian appearance, who shouted obscenities at them through a megaphone. They told the couple they were 'standing by and watching their country commit genocide' - a statement Lyndsey took to refer to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.

"My country is Britain," she said. "My interpretation was that they were talking about Israel. I was absolutely flabbergasted. We were made to feel unsafe in our own town."

The men were moved on by the police but the experience left the family feeling unsettled.

"Obviously they were just a small group of extremists. But you can't just call people names in the street," she said.

A police spokesman said an officer would be taking a full statement from Mrs Kramer so that the incident could be investigated.