What to know about the attack at a synagogue in England on Yom Kippur

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LONDON (AP) — An assailant rammed a car into people at a synagogue in northwest England and then attacked with a knife in what authorities have called a terrorist assault that left two people dead and at least three seriously wounded.

Police fatally shot the suspect in the attack Thursday at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Manchester on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish year.

Here’s what to know:

— At 9:31 a.m., police were called to the synagogue in the Manchester suburb of Crumpsall, about 200 miles (320 kilometers) northwest of London, by a member of the public, who said he had seen a car being driven toward people, and that one man had been stabbed.

— At 9:34 a.m., police were on site. Worshippers had barricaded themselves inside the synagogue to prevent the assailant from getting inside.

— At 9:37 a.m., police declared the national code word — Plato — for first responders when concluding that a “marauding terror attack” is taking place.

—- At 9:38 a.m., the assailant had been shot dead by police. The suspicious vest worn by the assailant was later found to be fake.

Greater Manchester Police said two people died during the attack: Adrian Daulby, 53, and Melvin Cravitz, 66, both members of the local Jewish community.

On Friday, police said Daulby appears to have been accidentally shot by a police officer as worshippers tried to stop the attacker entering the building synagogue. Daulby’s family said in a statement that he “was a hero” whose “final act was one of profound courage.”

Cravitz was killed outside the synagogue, according to the synagogue's rabbi, Daniel Walker.

Police also said that one of the three people who were hospitalized also suffered a gunshot wound. One of the others sustained a stab wound while the second was struck by the car driven by the attacker.

Police praised the “quick response” of the witness as well as the bravery of security guards and worshippers for preventing the suspect from entering the synagogue.

Police said the man responsible for the attack was Jihad Al-Shamie, a 35-year-old British citizen of Syrian descent who came to the U.K. as a young child and became a citizen in 2006.

Authorities said he was not previously known to police or the security services.

A statement on Facebook from the attacker’s family condemned the “heinous act, which targeted peaceful, innocent civilians.

Three other people — two men in their 30s and a woman in her 60s — have been arrested on suspicion of preparing or committing acts of terrorism. They are in custody but have not been charged.

Around six hours after the incident, the Metropolitan Police in London, which leads counterterror policing operations across the U.K., confirmed that the incident is being treated as a terrorist attack and that patrols at synagogues and other Jewish sites are being stepped up “to provide reassurance.”

Police said they are still working to determine the motive behind the attack. But it took place on Yom Kippur, the day of atonement and the most solemn day in the Jewish calendar. Synagogues are filled with people on the holy day.

It came amid high tensions over Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer returned early Thursday from a summit of European leaders in Copenhagen, Denmark, to London where he chaired an emergency security meeting. On Friday, Starmer visited the scene of the attack with his wife Victoria, and said it was designed to “inflict fear.”

At a vigil, Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy was heckled by members of the crowd who accused the government of allowing antisemitism to spread, by, for example, not clamping down on regular pro-Palestine protests in London and other cities. They have been mostly peaceful, but some say that chants such as “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” incite violence. Some British Jews also say the U.K.’s recognition of a Palestinian state this month has emboldened antisemitism — a claim the government rejects.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has urged those planning a march on Saturday to cancel it, and has asked anyone thinking of going to think again. Organizers say the march is going ahead.

Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, the head of Orthodox Judaism in Britain, said the attack was “the day we hoped we would never see, but which deep down, we knew would come,” and urged authorities to stem a rising tide of antisemitism in Britain.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that “weakness in the face of terrorism only brings more terrorism. Only strength and unity can defeat it.”

King Charles III said he and his wife, Queen Camilla, were “deeply shocked and saddened to learn of the horrific attack in Manchester, especially on such a significant day for the Jewish community.”

Politicians from across the political spectrum also condemned the attack, as did Muslim, Christian and other religious leaders.

The U.K. has traditionally been a safe country for Jewish people though antisemitic incidents in the U.K. have risen following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel and Israel’s ongoing military campaign in Gaza.

Mirvis said the attack was the result of “an unrelenting wave of Jew hatred” on the streets and online.

Starmer acknowledged that antisemitism is “a hatred that is rising once again, and Britain must defeat it once again.”