Manchester Synagogue Attack Leaves Two Dead on Yom Kippur as Anti-Israel Protests Continue
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A brutal terrorist attack at a Manchester synagogue during Yom Kippur services left two Jewish worshippers dead and three others seriously injured, marking yet another assault on the Jewish community during a sacred holiday and raising urgent questions about the link between rising anti-Israel sentiment and violent antisemitism in Britain.
The attack at Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation in Crumpsall occurred at 9:31 a.m. on Thursday, October 2, 2025, as hundreds of congregants observed Yom Kippur — the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, known as the Day of Atonement. The timing was chillingly deliberate, echoing the October 7, 2023 Hamas terrorist attack on Israel that also targeted Jews during a religious holiday, Simchat Torah, killing over 1,200 people.
Jihad al-Shamie, a 35-year-old Syrian-born British citizen, drove a vehicle toward worshippers before exiting with a knife and stabbing those nearby. The attacker, wearing what appeared to be an explosive vest, killed Adrian Daulby, 53, and Melvin Cravitz, 66, both from Crumpsall, before being shot dead by armed police. Three others remain hospitalized with serious injuries.
“The second he got out of the car, he started stabbing anyone near him,” neighbor Chava Lewin told British media.
Rabbi Daniel Walker was hailed as a hero for locking congregants inside the building and preventing the attacker from entering, potentially saving dozens of lives. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, who cut short a European visit to chair an emergency COBRA meeting, called the swift actions of security staff and worshippers essential in preventing “an even greater tragedy.”
Prime Minister Netanyahu wrote on Twitter, “as I warned at the UN: weakness in the face of terrorism only brings more terrorism. Only strength and unity can defeat it.”
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