Israeli embassy in London condemns Synagogue attack

The Israeli embassy in London has condemned the attack on a Synagogue in Manchester that left three people dead including the attacker and four others injured on Thursday.

In a social media post, it called the attack "abhorrent and deeply distressing"

The attack occurred on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, when synagogues are particularly busy with worshippers.

King Charles III said he was deeply shocked and saddend to learn of the "horrific attack." 

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he was "appalled" by the attack as he cut short his attendance of the European summit to return He is heading back early from a European summit in Copenhagen to chair a COBR crisis meeting.

Manchester has the highest Jewish population in Great Britain -- after London -- with a large portion of its 30,000 Jews living in the Prestwich area, a suburb just down the road from where the attack took place.

Police have not confirmed whether the incident is being treated as terror-related. 

How the event unfolded

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said they were called at 09:31 on Thursday to the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue on Middleton Road after reports of a car being driven at members of the public

Two people died after a man drove a car towards worshippers and carried out a stabbing at a synagogue in Crumpsall, in Manchester according to authorities in the UK. 

A third person suspected to be the offender was shot by police and is also believed to have died, according to a police statement.

Authorities declared a “major incident” and invoked its PLATO counter-terror protocol within minutes. Firearms officers shot the suspect at 09:38, and the North West Ambulance Service arrived shortly afterwards to treat victims.

A bomb disposal unit also arrived at the scene.

Police said four people had sustained injuries.

Emergency personnel work at the scene, after an attack in which a car was driven at pedestrians and stabbings were reported near a synagogue in north Manchester, Britain, 2 October, 2025.

Reuters

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that police were being deployed to all synagogues.

"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 Jewish community safe," Starmer said on Thursday.

Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham called it a “serious incident” but said the immediate danger had passed. He urged people to avoid the area while emergency services remained at the scene.

The North West Ambulance Service confirmed it had deployed multiple resources.

“Our priority is to ensure people receive the medical help they need as quickly as possible,” it said.

This is a developing story.

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