Manchester synagogue attack

The Manchester synagogue attack was a terrorist attack that occurred on 2 October 2025 during the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, when a man drove a car into pedestrians before stabbing worshippers at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation, a synagogue in Higher Crumpsall, a suburb of Manchester in the United Kingdom.

Manchester synagogue attack
The Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation, where the attack occurred, pictured in October 2015
Location	Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation, Higher Crumpsall, Manchester, England
Coordinates	53°31′12″N 2°14′55″W
Date	2 October 2025 (2025-10-02) 9:31 (BST (UTC+01:00))
Attack type	Vehicle-ramming attack knife attack
Weapons	Car knife
Deaths	3 (including the attacker)
Injured	3
Assailant	Jihad al-Shamie

The attacker, Jihad al-Shamie, was a 35-year-old naturalised British citizen born in Syria. Three people were killed, including the offender who was shot dead by police; three others, including a security guard, were injured and treated in hospital. The incident was declared a terrorist attack later that day and three people were arrested.

Background

Yom Kippur is the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, a day centred around atonement and repentance, with full fasting and asceticism accompanied by extended prayer services and the confession of sins.^[1]

British Jews have raised concerns about increased vandalism at synagogues and antisemitic comments online and in person due to the ongoing war in Gaza. Jewish security groups, including Community Security Trust, issued warnings earlier in the summer for Jewish people to "be vigilant and follow the strict security measures that are in place at communal buildings, events and areas" such as locking all doors when not in use, conducting security sweeps, and avoiding congregating outside communal buildings.^[2]

Incident

Police were called to Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue in Crumpsall at 9:31 am BST on 2 October 2025, after callers reported that a driver had driven into pedestrians and begun stabbing people.^[3] Manchester police officers quickly declared a major incident and arrived at the scene within seven minutes, shooting the attacker dead at 9:38 am. Residents local to the area reported seeing a man with a knife jump out of a moving car which had been driving recklessly and begin stabbing people, others saw people on the ground bleeding.^[4] Worshippers had gathered for a Yom Kippur service, which had begun at 9:00 am.^[5] Eyewitnesses inside the synagogue praised Rabbi Daniel Walker for protecting congregants by locking them inside the synagogue and keeping the attacker out, before moving them to safety.^[6]

Firearms officers were deployed at 9:34 am as police received further reports that a security guard had been attacked with a knife. Greater Manchester Police (GMP) declared a major incident shortly before shots were fired by firearms officers at 9:38 am, killing a man believed to be the offender.^[7]

At 9:37 am GMP initiated Operation Plato, a protocol used in response to suspected terrorist attacks. The incident was formally declared a terrorist attack later that day.^[8][9] Paramedics arrived at 9:41 am and treated four members of the public for injuries caused by both the vehicle and stab wounds.^[5][10]

Around noon, a bomb disposal unit was deployed to the scene because police believed the attacker was wearing a suicide belt.^[11][3] Police said that they were unable to confirm whether the attacker was deceased until the investigation concluded.^[8] Investigators would later state the device was "found to be not viable".^[3] At 1:23 pm, a loud controlled explosion was reported,^[12] which was later confirmed to be from the police gaining access to the attacker's car.^[13] Police presence was increased at every synagogue in the Greater Manchester area in the immediate aftermath of the attack.^[14][11]

Victims

Three men were confirmed dead following the attack, including the male attacker, who was shot by police. The two male victims, identified as 53-year old Adrian Daubly and 66-year-old Melvin Cravitz, were Jewish.^[4] According to police, one of them was likely mistakenly shot by officers.^[15] Police also said that three people were seriously injured and remain in hospital in a serious condition; one has a stab wound, one was hit by the car,^[16] and the third was wounded by police gunfire.^[17]

Attacker

The offender was identified as Jihad al-Shamie, a 35-year-old Syrian-born man who had immigrated to the United Kingdom with his family as a child and had naturalised as a British citizen in 2006 aged 16.^[18]

At the time of the attack, al-Shamie resided in the Langley Crescent area of Prestwich, located two miles from the synagogue.^[19][20] He was initially falsely reported to have been a part of the British counter-terrorism programme that tries to identify people at risk of being radicalised.^[21]

Investigation

The national head of counter-terrorist policing announced the attack was being treated as a terrorist incident, and that three people other than the assailant have been arrested in two separate areas.^[22] Two men in their 30s in Crumpsall and a woman in her 60s in Prestwich were all arrested on suspicion of the commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism following the attack.^[23] Prime Minister Keir Starmer stated at a press conference that the attacker targeted "Jews because they are Jews" and said that the United Kingdom must defeat this rising hatred.^[24]

Investigators said they were "still trying to locate and examine all of the suspect's electronic devices, looking for clues as to what radicalised him" and are looking for "an Islamist motive but are looking for evidence to confirm or rebut that theory".^[25]

Reactions

Prime Minister Starmer returned from a European Political Community leaders' meeting in Copenhagen, Denmark, to chair a COBR emergency meeting.^[9] He stated that "extra police assets" would be deployed to synagogues across the country due to the attack.^[8] The Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood echoed this, saying the government "will do whatever is required to keep our Jewish community safe."^[25] Mayor of London Sadiq Khan likewise announced there would be a "stepping up (of) patrols in Jewish communities and synagogues across London" by the Metropolitan Police.^[11] Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham commended the quick response of the Greater Manchester Police and raised concerns about the fear and sadness caused by the attack, saying that the city would not allow "division in our communities".^[25][26]

Members of the British royal family offered thoughts and prayers and praised the swift actions of emergency services.^[27][28]

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed sympathy, saying "Israel grieves with the Jewish community in the UK after the barbaric terror attack in Manchester", adding "as I warned at the UN: weakness in the face of terrorism only brings more terrorism. Only strength and unity can defeat it."^[29][25] Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar accused the British authorities of not doing enough to curb rising antisemitism in Britain, stating that "blatant and rampant antisemitic and anti-Israeli incitement" had become common.^[30]

British Christian and Muslim community leaders condemned the attack and offered prayers and support to the Jewish people in the UK.^[26] Amnesty International UK expressed sadness over the events, calling it a "horrific act of violence that has taken the lives of two innocent people and injured many more".^[31] Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood urged the cancellation of pro-Palestinian marches after the terror attack, backing police calls to halt a major protest planned for Saturday in Trafalgar Square. Hours after the attack, clashes broke out between demonstrators and police outside Downing Street, while Mahmood separately denounced such protests as "un-British," "dishonourable," and "insensitive" to Jewish communities.^[32]

See also

• History of the Jews in Manchester
• Operation Temperer
• List of attacks on Jewish institutions