2 killed in attack on British synagogue on Yom Kippur

By MICHAEL D. SHEAR, LIZZIE DEARDEN and EMMA BUBOLA

A man attacked a synagogue in Manchester, England, on Thursday, using a car and a knife to kill two people and injure four others on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar.

Police said that officers shot and killed the man minutes after he began his assault, which the country’s counterterrorism police formally labeled an act of terrorism. A vest worn by the attacker, which police earlier said had “the appearance of an explosive device,” was found not to be viable, investigators said.

Two people have been arrested in connection with the attack, police said, but they did not release their identities or indicate how they might have been connected to the suspected assailant. Investigators said the police believed they knew the identity of the attacker but were working to confirm it.

A horrific scene, captured and quickly disseminated on social media, began when the attacker rammed a car into people outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation in the heart of the large Orthodox Jewish community north of Manchester.

“The driver of the car was seen then to attack people with a knife. He was wearing about his body a vest which had the appearance of an explosive device,” said Stephen Watson, the chief constable of the Manchester police department.

The attacker was prevented by security guards and others from entering the synagogue, where morning Yom Kippur prayer services had begun about a half-hour earlier. A large number of people were worshipping, they said, and were initially told to remain inside. They were later evacuated.

The attack rattled the Jewish community in Manchester and prompted increased police protection at Jewish cultural and religious sites around Britain.

Here’s what else to know:

— Terrorism label: British police formally labeled the attack on the synagogue an act of terrorism but did not detail the reasons for the declaration. That designation requires a senior officer to decide whether the available evidence meets Britain’s legal definition of terrorism, which covers violence “for the purpose of advancing a political, religious, racial or ideological cause.”

— Security fears: The attack left Manchester, and Britain, on edge. Security was increased at Jewish hubs and cultural sites across the country. And in London, a suspicious package forced the evacuation of one of the city’s largest train stations for about 30 minutes. Transit officials later reopened the station.

— Reactions: Reaction to the attack came from across the political spectrum. Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the attacker “a vile individual who wanted to attack Jews because they are Jews.” Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, said she was “horrified by the news.” Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the Conservative Party, the main opposition in Parliament, called it a “vile and disgusting attack.”

— Jewish community: Manchester, one of England’s biggest metropolitan areas, is home to the largest Jewish community in the country outside London, about 30,000 people. But the city has an even larger population that identifies as Muslim — the result of waves of immigration over the centuries from across the globe.