British police says Manchester synagogue attacker is of Syrian heritage

The attacker behind the deadly assault at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Manchester yesterday has been identified by police as Jihad Al‑Shamie, a 35-year-old British national of Syrian heritage. Al‑Shamie came to the UK when he was six and was granted British citizenship in 2006 when he was still a minor.

Early searches of official databases revealed that he had not been the subject of any active investigation by Counter Terrorism Policing or the Security Service, MI5. Police records showed that Al‑Shamie had never been referred to the government’s Prevent Anti‑radicalisation Programme.

The attack happened last morning outside the synagogue in Crumpsall in north Manchester, at a time when a large congregation was worshipping within. The moment was particularly grim as it fell on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, a solemn day of fasting and prayer.

Witness statements indicated that Al‑Shamie had conducted reconnaissance of the area some ten minutes before the assault and had clashed with security guards when denied entry. He later returned in a car, rammed it into a guard at the gate, then exited the vehicle and began stabbing people outside the building.

One witness claimed to have seen him attack anyone wearing a kippah. The rampage left two Jewish men dead and three others admitted to the hospital with serious injuries.

Law enforcement intervened swiftly, fatally shooting the attacker within seven minutes of the first emergency call. Video evidence captured officers alerting the public that the man was equipped with a bomb. A suspicious device worn by Al‑Shamie was later examined and confirmed to be non‑viable. Officials noted that the presence of a fake suicide vest was an early signal that the attack was ideologically motivated.

The scale of the tragedy could have been enormous had it not been for the courage of the synagogue staff and worshippers. Rabbi Daniel Walker, the congregation’s spiritual leader, was praised for promptly locking and barricading the doors to block Al‑Shamie from entering the packed house of worship.

The police subsequently designated the event a terrorist incident and detained three additional suspects—two men in their 30s and a woman in her 60s—on suspicion of involvement in the commission, planning, or instigation of terrorism. The investigation is now centred on understanding the motives behind the attack and scrutinising Al‑Shamie’s digital footprint to establish whether he acted alone.

The Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre is reviewing whether to increase the National Terrorism Threat Level (currently set at Substantial, meaning an attack is likely).

Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned the incident as an attack on Jews simply because they were Jews. He pledged to combat rising antisemitic hatred and promised the UK Jewish community the security they deserve by dispatching a more visible police presence and additional resources to synagogues across the country.

The Chief Rabbi, Sir Ephraim Mirvis, described the assault as the tragic outcome of an unforgiving wave of Jew hatred and said that while the community’s hearts were broken, they had braced themselves for a day they hoped would never come but feared might.

Israeli leaders also voiced their condemnation. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar denounced the atrocity, with Sa’ar accusing the UK government of failing to curb a toxic surge in antisemitism.