MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - On Thursday, October 2, an assailant drove a car into people outside a synagogue in northern England and then got out and began stabbing them, killing two and seriously injuring four others.
Police are calling this a terrorist attack on the holiest day of the Jewish year, Yom Kippur.
Responding officers fatally shot the alleged suspect at the synagogue, the Associated Press (AP) reported.
Authorities said it took some time to confirm that he was dead because he was wearing a vest that looked as if he had explosives on it. Police later confirmed that he did not have a bomb.
The Metropolitan Police force in London, which leads the nation's counter-terrorism policing operations, declared the violent rampage a terrorist attack. Authorities believe that the man responsible is 35-year-old Jihad Al-Shamie.
He is a British citizen of Syrian descent who entered the U.K. as a young child and became a citizen in 2006.
An initial check of records showed he was not part of a U.K. counter-terror program that tries to identify people at risk of being radicalized. Police said three people were arrested on suspicion of acts of terrorism — two men in their 30s and a woman in her 60s.
One of the two people killed was a security guard protecting the synagogue and both victims who died were Jewish. A large crowd had gathered for Yom Kippur services before the attack. Quick action by members of the public helped prevent Al-Shamie from entering the synagogue, People reported.
Armed officers were also deployed to other syngogues and Jewish sites across Manchester immediately after the attack as a precaution. "A vile individual committed a terrorist attack that attacked Jews because they are Jews and attacked Britain because of our values," U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a statement.
Keir called the attack a "horrific incident" and said there would be a "more visible police presence" to protect Jewish communities across the country, CBS News reported.
"We are working to understand the motivation behind the attack as the investigation continues," police said in a statement. All victims were men. "I'm Jewish and absolutely terrified," Vicky, who lives near the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Manchester, said.
"It's just absolutely frightening because I'm scared for my own safety and my mom's safety," she added.
Home Security Shabana Mahmood said the government increased security at synagogues across the country. "We will do whatever is required to keep our Jewish community safe," Mahmood said. "To those who seek to divide us, they will fail."
Police are calling this a terrorist attack on the holiest day of the Jewish year, Yom Kippur.
Responding officers fatally shot the alleged suspect at the synagogue, the Associated Press (AP) reported.
Authorities said it took some time to confirm that he was dead because he was wearing a vest that looked as if he had explosives on it. Police later confirmed that he did not have a bomb.
The Metropolitan Police force in London, which leads the nation's counter-terrorism policing operations, declared the violent rampage a terrorist attack. Authorities believe that the man responsible is 35-year-old Jihad Al-Shamie.
He is a British citizen of Syrian descent who entered the U.K. as a young child and became a citizen in 2006.
An initial check of records showed he was not part of a U.K. counter-terror program that tries to identify people at risk of being radicalized. Police said three people were arrested on suspicion of acts of terrorism — two men in their 30s and a woman in her 60s.
One of the two people killed was a security guard protecting the synagogue and both victims who died were Jewish. A large crowd had gathered for Yom Kippur services before the attack. Quick action by members of the public helped prevent Al-Shamie from entering the synagogue, People reported.
Armed officers were also deployed to other syngogues and Jewish sites across Manchester immediately after the attack as a precaution. "A vile individual committed a terrorist attack that attacked Jews because they are Jews and attacked Britain because of our values," U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a statement.
Keir called the attack a "horrific incident" and said there would be a "more visible police presence" to protect Jewish communities across the country, CBS News reported.
"We are working to understand the motivation behind the attack as the investigation continues," police said in a statement. All victims were men. "I'm Jewish and absolutely terrified," Vicky, who lives near the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Manchester, said.
"It's just absolutely frightening because I'm scared for my own safety and my mom's safety," she added.
Home Security Shabana Mahmood said the government increased security at synagogues across the country. "We will do whatever is required to keep our Jewish community safe," Mahmood said. "To those who seek to divide us, they will fail."
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