Manchester: Two people dead at Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue, three more injured by moving car

Police have named the person they believe is responsible for Thursday’s horrific attack on a Manchester synagogue, according to the BBC.

Jihad Al-Shamie has been identified as the person who reportedly drove a car into pedestrians and stabbed a security guard near a synagogue in northern England on Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar.

“He is a British citizen of Syrian descent,” the Greater Manchester Police Force said. They added that formal identification is yet to take place.

Greater Manchester Police said officers had shot the 35-year-old suspect after being called to the scene at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in the Crumpsall district of the city in northern England.

Police acted after a witness said a car had rammed members of the public and that one man had been stabbed.

The suspect was believed to be dead but officers could not confirm this “due to safety issues surrounding suspicious items on his person”, with a bomb disposal unit called to the scene.

Two men in their 30s and a woman in her 60s have also been arrested on suspicion of commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism.

After the attack, police were seen ushering a large group of mostly Jewish elderly men - some in tears, many looking shocked - away from the synagogue. Some were wearing white robes, others were in suits and wearing a skullcap.

“I’m appalled by the attack at a synagogue in Crumpsall,” Prime Minister Keir Starmer said as he rushed away early from a European political gathering in Copenhagen to return to Britain to chair an emergency meeting.

“The fact that this has taken place on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, makes it all the more horrific,” Starmer said.

A video shared on social media and verified by Reuters showed police shooting a man inside the synagogue’s perimeter, while another man lay on the floor in a pool of blood, appearing to wear a traditional Jewish head covering.

Starmer said additional police were being deployed to synagogues across the country, adding “we will do everything to keep our Jewish community safe”.

A police spokesman said: “We are grateful to the member of the public whose quick response to what they witnessed allowed our swift action, and as a result the offender was prevented from entering the synagogue.

“We know today’s horrifying attack, on the Jewish community’s holiest day, will have caused significant shock and fear throughout all of our communities.”

Britain’s King Charles said he was “deeply shocked and saddened” to learn of the attack, “especially on such a significant day for the Jewish community”.

A Reuters photographer said there was a heavy police presence in the area. Ambulance crews were seen in protective body armour and helmets, and at least one person was seen being taken into an ambulance.

The North West Ambulance Service said they had dispatched resources to the area.

“We are currently assessing the situation and working with other members of the emergency services,” the ambulance service said.

Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham said it was a serious incident but told BBC radio that “the immediate danger appears to be over”.

Yom Kippur is the most sacred day on the Jewish calendar when even many non-regular synagogue-goers take time to pray and all road traffic stops in Israel.

Britain suffered its second worst year in modern times for anti-Semitism in 2024 with more than 3500 incidents being recorded, reflecting sustained levels of hatred towards Jews, the Community Security Trust, a charity that provides security to Jewish organisations and institutions across Britain, said earlier this year.

Reported levels of anti-Semitism rocketed to record levels in the wake of the October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas on Israel and Israel’s subsequent war in Gaza that has devastated the Palestinian enclave.