OAN Staff Katherine Mosack and Brooke Mallory
2:40 PM – Thursday, October 2, 2025
Two people were killed and at least four more were injured in an attack on a Synagogue on the holiest Jewish holiday of the year in Manchester, England.
Thursday marks Yom Kippur, a Jewish holiday centered on repentance and atonement that involves fasting and extended prayer.
However, on the morning of the service, at approximately 9:31 a.m. local time, a 35-year-old British citizen of Syrian descent, Jihad Al-Shami, drove a car into pedestrians and then began stabbing individuals outside the synagogue.
Three suspects, two men and one woman, were arrested as well on suspicion of commission, and preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism, according to the Greater Manchester Police. Investigators are now examining the suspect’s electronic devices to determine the motive and any potential connections to extremist groups.
Nonetheless, the assailant was fatally shot by police within seven minutes of the first emergency call. Initially, authorities were cautious in confirming his death due to suspicious items on him, which later turned out to be fake explosives.
Authorities have since labeled the attack as terrorism.
After the incident, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told reporters: “The attack in Manchester this morning is absolutely shocking, and all of our thoughts are with those affected. I’m on my way back to London. When I arrive, I will chair an emergency COBRA meeting.”
COBRA meetings, named after the “Cabinet Office Briefing Room A,” are convened by an emergency response committee.
Starmer had to cut short his trip to a European leaders’ conference in Copenhagen and return to Downing Street to chair the meeting.
“I’m already able to say that additional police assets are being deployed to synagogues across the country, and we will do everything to keep our church community safe,” he stated.
The UK prime minister quickly condemned the “vile” suspect, alleged to be Muslim, who “attacked Jews because they are Jews.”
“I promise you that over the coming days, you will see the other Britain, the Britain of compassion, of decency, of love,” Starmer said. “I promise you that this Britain will come together to wrap our arms around your community and show you that Britain is a place where you and your family are safe, secure and belong.”
He continued, “Our hearts are with the families of the murdered, and we pray for the swift recovery of the wounded,” he said. “As I warned at the UN: Weakness in the face of terrorism only brings more terrorism. Only strength and unity can defeat it.”
The attacker was prevented from entering the place of worship, thanks to a quick police response, but the four injured people were said to be in serious condition, according to local hospital representatives.
King Charles III said in a statement, “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.”
Israel’s Embassy in the U.K. also denounced the attack and thanked the Greater Manchester Police for its response.
“That such an act of violence should be perpetrated on the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, in a place of prayer and community, is abhorrent and deeply distressing,” the embassy said in a statement.
Manchester was also the site of one of Britain’s deadliest terror attacks in May 2017, when an Islamic extremist detonated a suicide bomb at the end of an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena. The attack killed 23 people, including the bomber, and injured over 1,000, many of them children.
The Community Security Trust, a charity that tracks antisemitic acts perpetrated in Britain, reported at least 1,521 antisemitic cases between January and June of this year, including physical assaults, property damage, graffiti, online harassment, and three cases labeled as “extreme violence.”
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