In a shocking incident, a man has been shot dead by police after he attacked a synagogue in Manchester, killing two worshippers on Yom Kippur – the holiest day in the Jewish calendar.

The perpetrator deliberately drove a car into a large crowd of people at around 9.30 on Thursday morning and then proceeded to stab a member of the community around the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation, in the Crumpsall area of the city.

A Shacharis – which is a morning prayer service – was under way in the synagogue, but thankfully the attacker was unable to gain entry and in rapid time armed police officers arrived at the scene and were able to shoot the assailant, who appeared to be wearing an explosive device around his waist, before he could harm anyone else.

A video shared on social media appeared to show police officers pointing guns at someone lying on the ground outside the front of the synagogue. The armed officers were heard to shout at onlookers to “get back” and “move on”, warning that there was potentially a bomb.

A bomb disposal unit was quickly at the scene and a series of explosions could be heard soon afterwards. Four other people were understood to have sustained serious injuries, caused by both the vehicle and stab wounds.

Police say they know the identity of the suspect, but for safety reasons they were not releasing his name at this early stage. 

The attack was immediately declared a terrorist incident and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer cancelled a visit to Denmark and was flying straight back to the UK.

The Metropolitan Police’s head of counter terrorism policing Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor did however say that there was no ongoing risk to the public.

Witness accounts

Witnesses have been telling of their horror after seeing first hand the carnage around the incident. One – one who gave his name as Gareth – explained that he was a delivery driver and had been stuck in traffic, believing that there had been a normal everyday collision. He said he then saw a man “bleeding out on the floor” and heard lots of shouting, before realising there was another man on the floor in front of a car. 

He then noticed a man, who he said had a knife and was “stabbing at the window” of a building trying to get inside. Gareth described the police arriving almost immediately and seeing them challenge and then shoot the attacker, which he described as “nerve-racking” to see.

Another man, Sam Martin, a 41-year-old local told how the neighbourhood has all faiths living amongst it. “Muslim, Jewish, everyone lives here and I’ve known nothing but love and kindness from our Jewish community. I’m just shocked this could happen,” he said.

PM heading back from summit

The PM who had been attending a summit of the European Political Community, an intergovernmental forum for political and strategic discussions about the future of the continent, in Copenhagen, said on X: “I’m appalled by the attack at a synagogue in Crumpsall, the fact that this has taken place on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, makes it all the more horrific. 

“My thoughts are with the loved ones of all those affected, and my thanks go to the emergency services and all the first responders.”

Messages of support

King Charles said he was “deeply shocked” and “saddened” by the attack and Rabbi Jonathan Romain, head of the Rabbinic Court of Great Britain, said the incident would raise fears among Jews that political violence could turn to religious hatred. 

He added: “Not only is this a sacred day, the most sacred in the Jewish calendar, but it’s also a time of mass gathering, and the time when the Jewish community, however religious or irreligious, gathers together.”

Solidarity from the French

French President Emmanuel Macron said his country offers its solidarity with the families of the victims of the synagogue attack in Manchester.  “France stands alongside the families struck by an antisemitic terrorist attack against the worshippers of a synagogue in Manchester, the Jewish community, and the British people. 

“On this day of Yom Kippur, we reaffirm with determination: the fight against antisemitism is ours, and we will wage it without respite.” 

Day of atonement

Around 287,000 people in England and Wales identify as Jewish, according to the last census conducted in 2021 and Yom Kippur is the Day of Atonement for their communities. It begins at sundown on October 1 and ends at nightfall on October 2. 

The Jewish people atone for their sins from the past year and ask for forgiveness from God and from other people. It is a day of fasting, repentance and worship. In addition to refraining from eating and drinking, those observing the holiday do not bathe, they do not wear leather shoes or gold jewellery and they do not engage in “spousal” intimacy.