Yom Kippur Carnage: Knife-Wielding Attacker Kills 2 Outside Synagogue

A deadly car and knife attack outside a synagogue in England left two people dead Thursday, coinciding with Yom Kippur observances worldwide.

The killings took place outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Manchester. At least three other people were seriously injured, and the suspected assailant is believed to have been shot dead by law enforcement. According to The Telegraph, “Police said it had ‘declared Plato’ – the national code-word used by police and emergency services when responding to a ‘marauding terror attack.'”

Police said they could not currently confirm the attacker’s death “due to safety issues” surrounding “suspicious items on his person.” The attacker appears to have been wearing a suicide vest, and a bomb squad responded to the scene. He was reportedly lying on the ground outside the synagogue after being shot by police. 

Witnesses described a man driving his car into the synagogue’s gates before getting out and stabbing people around him. The doors to the synagogue were barricaded, and the attacker was unable to enter, The Telegraph reported. 

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“I’m appalled by the attack at a synagogue in Crumpsall,” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said. “The fact that this has taken place on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, makes it all the more horrific.”

He said that additional police resources would be deployed to synagogues nationwide. Starmer also added that he was leaving a meeting in Denmark to return to London for an emergency cabinet meeting. 

This morning’s attack is absolutely shocking.

I’m on my way back to London to chair an emergency meeting, and additional police assets are being deployed to synagogues across the country.

We will do everything we can to keep our Jewish community safe. pic.twitter.com/bNUfGbWwfq

— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) October 2, 2025

The Israeli Embassy in the United Kingdom said that it was in close contact with the Jewish community in Manchester. The northwest English city is home to around 30,000 Jews. 

“That such an act of violence should be perpetrated on the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, in a place of prayer and community, is abhorrent and deeply distressing,” the embassy said. “We thank the Greater Manchester Police for their swift response. The safety and security of Jewish communities in the United Kingdom must be guaranteed.”

King Charles also condemned the killings. 

“My wife and I have been deeply saddened and shocked to learn of the horrific attack in Manchester, especially on such a significant day for the Jewish community,” he said.