Two Jewish people were killed outside a synagogue in Manchester this morning in a vehicle ramming and stabbing attack.
The attack, which took place on Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar, also injured several, including four in serious condition.
Here’s everything we know so far.
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The incident happened outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue, on Middleton Road.
According to the synagogue’s website, morning prayers started at 9am and several worshippers were inside.
Officers were called at 9.31am by a man who said he witnessed a car being driven directly at people outside the synagogue.
The driver then stabbed people with a knife, but was unable to gain access to the building after the temple’s rabbi barricaded the door.
Footage showed two armed police officers with their rifles aimed at the suspected attacker on the ground as one shouted: ‘He has a bomb, go away!’
The video, posted on Facebook, showed the attacker trying to get up only to be shot by an armed police officer.
The suspect was shot at 9.38am and later died, the force said.
Officers were initially unable to confirm his condition because of what they called ‘suspicious items on his person’.
They added in a news conference this afternoon that he was wearing a vest that ‘had the appearance of an explosive device’.
While a bomb disposal unit was dispatched, police clarified that the ‘loud noise’ locals heard earlier was caused by entering the suspect’s vehicle.
Some hospitals in the city were briefly on lockdown but have since reopened.
What do we know about the attacker?
On social media, an image taken near the scene this morning shows a man believed to be the suspect. He has several items tied to his waist.
Police have not announced the identity of the suspect or their motive, but officials believe they know his identity and haven’t verified it yet.
Two people have been arrested in connection with the assault.
The attack is being treated as an act of terrorism, defined under law as violence ‘for the purpose of advancing a political, religious, racial or ideological cause’.
The force declared ‘Plato’ within minutes of arriving at the scene, a reference to Operation Plato, a rulebook for armed police and emergency services when responding to ‘marauding terrorist attacks’.
Where is Crumpsall, where the attack happened?
The synagogue is in Crumpsall, a suburb about 2.5 miles north of central Manchester.
The neighbourhood is home to many orthodox Jews, with census data showing that more than 30,000 Jews call Manchester home.
What is Yom Kippur?
Yom Kippur is the most solemn and sacred date on the Jewish calendar.
The day centres on repentance and becoming closer to God, withcongregation members spending 25 hours fasting and praying.
Many Jews may spend the entire day at temple.
What has the reaction been?
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said he was ‘appalled’ by the attack and that ‘the fact that this has taken place on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, makes it all the more horrific’.
He cut his trip to Copenhagen short to fly back to London to lead a meeting with COBRA, a government committee that handles national emergencies.
King Charles said: ‘My wife and I have been deeply saddened and shocked to learn of the horrific attack in Manchester, especially on such a significant day for the Jewish community.’
Andy Burnham, the mayor of Manchester, has said the ‘anxious’ Jewish community has ‘seen rising incidents of antisemitism over recent times’.
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said the police are ‘stepping up high visibility policing in and around synagogues in London’.
Security has been ramped up at Jewish hubs across the UK, including in one of London’s largest Jewish community centres, JW3.
The Community Security Trust, a charity that tracks antisemitic acts, reported 1,521 cases between January and June.
The charity said: ‘We urge people not to congregate outside communal premises and synagogues to keep their doors closed at all times.’
The Institute for Jewish Policy Research released a report today on antisemitism in the UK since October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched a deadly attack on Israel.
Nearly one in two Jews say that antisemitism is a ‘very big problem’ for them, while one in two say that Israel’s actions in the war clashes with their Jewish values.
The Manchester Council of Mosques extended solidarity with the city’s Jewish community, adding: ‘Any attempt to divide us with violence or hatred will fail.’
For Madiha Faisal, manager of Sofiya’s Collection, which is on the same road as the synagogue, the attack has left her family shocked.
‘At the moment, we are staying at home, no one is going out, and we are worried about when we will be able to open the shop again and how business will go now,’ she told Metro.
‘We’re just sad and in sorrow at this really unfortunate event.’
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