MANCHESTER, England (AP) — An assailant drove a car into people outside a synagogue in northern England on Thursday and then began stabbing them, killing two and wounding three seriously in an attack on the holiest day of the Jewish year, police said.
Officers shot and killed the suspect, Greater Manchester Police said, though it took authorities some time to confirm he was dead because of concerns he had an explosive on him.
The attack took place as people gathered at an Orthodox synagogue in suburban neighborhood of Manchester on Yom Kippur, the day of atonement and most solemn day in the Jewish calendar.
Antisemitic incidents in the U.K. have soared following Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and Israel’s ensuing military campaign in Gaza, according to Community Security Trust, an advocacy group for British Jews that works to eliminate antisemitism.
More than 1,500 incidents were reported in the first half of the year, the second-highest reported since the record set a year earlier.
“This is every rabbi’s or every Jewish person’s worst nightmare,” said Rabbi Jonathan Romain, of Maidenhead Synagogue and head of the Rabbinic Court of Great Britain. “Not only is this a sacred day, the most sacred in the Jewish calendar, but it’s also a time of mass gathering.”
Witnesses describe a car driving toward the synagogue and then a stabbing attack
In a series of posts on X, Greater Manchester Police said they were called to the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue shortly after 9:30 a.m. — shortly after services were set to begin. The caller said he saw a car being driven toward members of the public and that one man had been stabbed.
Chava Lewin, who lives next to the synagogue, said she heard a bang and thought it might be a firework until her husband ran inside their house and said there had been a “terrorist attack.”
A witness told her that she saw a car driving erratically crash into the gates of the house of worship.
“She thought maybe he had a heart attack,” Lewin said. “The second he got out of the car he started stabbing anyone near him. He went for the security guard and tried to break into the synagogue.”
Minutes later, police fired shots, saying they believed they had hit the assailant.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he was appalled by the attack and additional police officers would be deployed at synagogues across the U.K.
He flew home early from a summit of European leaders in Copenhagen, Denmark, to chair a meeting of the government’s emergency committee.
“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 on the X platform.
King Charles III said he and Queen Camilla were “deeply shocked and saddened″ to learn of the attack “on such a significant day for the Jewish community.″
“Our thoughts and prayers are with all those affected by this appalling incident and we greatly appreciate the swift actions of the emergency services,’′ he said on his social media feed.
Pylas and Melley reported from London.
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Officers shot and killed the suspect, Greater Manchester Police said, though it took authorities some time to confirm he was dead because of concerns he had an explosive on him.
The attack took place as people gathered at an Orthodox synagogue in suburban neighborhood of Manchester on Yom Kippur, the day of atonement and most solemn day in the Jewish calendar.
Antisemitic incidents in the U.K. have soared following Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and Israel’s ensuing military campaign in Gaza, according to Community Security Trust, an advocacy group for British Jews that works to eliminate antisemitism.
More than 1,500 incidents were reported in the first half of the year, the second-highest reported since the record set a year earlier.
“This is every rabbi’s or every Jewish person’s worst nightmare,” said Rabbi Jonathan Romain, of Maidenhead Synagogue and head of the Rabbinic Court of Great Britain. “Not only is this a sacred day, the most sacred in the Jewish calendar, but it’s also a time of mass gathering.”
Witnesses describe a car driving toward the synagogue and then a stabbing attack
In a series of posts on X, Greater Manchester Police said they were called to the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue shortly after 9:30 a.m. — shortly after services were set to begin. The caller said he saw a car being driven toward members of the public and that one man had been stabbed.
Chava Lewin, who lives next to the synagogue, said she heard a bang and thought it might be a firework until her husband ran inside their house and said there had been a “terrorist attack.”
A witness told her that she saw a car driving erratically crash into the gates of the house of worship.
“She thought maybe he had a heart attack,” Lewin said. “The second he got out of the car he started stabbing anyone near him. He went for the security guard and tried to break into the synagogue.”
Minutes later, police fired shots, saying they believed they had hit the assailant.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he was appalled by the attack and additional police officers would be deployed at synagogues across the U.K.
He flew home early from a summit of European leaders in Copenhagen, Denmark, to chair a meeting of the government’s emergency committee.
“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 on the X platform.
King Charles III said he and Queen Camilla were “deeply shocked and saddened″ to learn of the attack “on such a significant day for the Jewish community.″
“Our thoughts and prayers are with all those affected by this appalling incident and we greatly appreciate the swift actions of the emergency services,’′ he said on his social media feed.
Pylas and Melley reported from London.
Car and knife attack at UK synagogue on Yom Kippur kills 2 and wounds 3
An assailant drove a car into people outside a synagogue in northern England on Thursday and then began stabbing them, killing two and wounding three seriously in an attack on the holiest day of the Jewish year, police said. Officers shot and killed the suspect, Greater Manchester Police said...
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