Two members of the Jewish community were killed in an attack at Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in north Manchester on Thursday morning. In response, the Prime Minister held an emergency COBRA meeting in the afternoon.
A further three people remain in hospital with serious injuries. The attacker was shot dead by Greater Manchester Police. He was also wearing a “vest with the appearance of an explosive device.” The incident has been declared a terrorist attack, and two further arrests have been made.
In a statement from Downing Street on Thursday evening, Labour leader Keir Starmer said it was clear “hatred is rising once again” and emphasized that “Britain must defeat it once again.”
“Earlier today, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day for the Jewish community, a vile individual committed a terrorist attack targeting Jews because they are Jews,” he said.
The Prime Minister promised the Jewish community that he would “do everything in my power to guarantee you the security that you deserve, starting with a more visible police presence, protecting your community.”
He added, “I promise you that over the coming days, you will see the other Britain, the Britain of compassion, of decency, of love. And I promise you that this Britain will come together to wrap our arms around your community and show you that Britain is a place where you and your family are safe, secure and belong.”
Labour MP Patrick Hurley, representing Southport—where three girls were killed in a mass stabbing last year followed by violent riots—told PoliticsHome that it was important “the voices of the Jewish community are heard and acted upon.”
Hurley described the Manchester attack as a “racist attack” targeting the Jewish community “on the basis of their ethnicity,” drawing parallels with the targeting of the Muslim community in the Southport riots last year.
He urged people to “think twice about how their own politics are perceived by people who are in a minority and under threat.”
“There’s been a perspective around the flying of the English flag, the flag of St George and the Union Jack, and people have objected on the grounds that it makes people feel unwelcome,” Hurley said.
“Maybe thought needs to be given around what sort of flags might make the Jewish community feel unwelcome as well, and whether or not people need to take a step back around their own activism and their own politics.
“Offer that olive branch and that hand of support and friendship to the Jewish people across the UK, who will accurately be feeling under threat right now, and they will be feeling scared and intimidated.
“I wouldn’t say anybody from any authorities or any state agencies should step in, but I think people should just be mindful of what they do.”
Home Office data suggests that religious hate crimes against Jewish people in England and Wales have doubled in the last year. Offences against Jewish people now make up a third of all religious hate crimes recorded by police.
Multiple faith leaders have condemned the attack.
The Bishop of Manchester, the Right Reverend Dr David Walker, said: “Such acts of violence have no place in our communities. Manchester is a city built on diversity, mutual respect, and unity.”
Imam Qari Asim, co-chairman of the British Muslim Network, expressed his horror at the incident, describing it as “utterly abhorrent” and stating that it “has no place in our society.”
https://www.politicshome.com/news/article/prime-minister-condemns-vile-terrorist-two-killed-outside-manchester-synagogue
