People gather near the scene, after an attack in which a car was driven at pedestrians and stabbings were reported at a synagogue in north Manchester, Britain, on Yom Kippur, Oct. 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Phil Noble

British Jewish leaders warned that Thursday’s terrorist attack on a synagogue in Manchester was a long-feared tragedy, accusing the government of fueling a hostile environment and rising anti-Jewish hatred through its anti-Israel rhetoric.

On Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement and holiest day of the year in Judaism, a man identified by police as Jihad al-Shamie, 35, drove a car onto the grounds of the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue in Manchester, northern England, and went on a stabbing spree, leaving two Jewish men dead and at least three others critically injured.

The attack occurred as the congregation gathered to observe Yom Kippur and ended seven minutes later, when police shot the assailant dead.

The chief rabbi of the United Kingdom, Sir Ephraim Mirvis, said the attack was a tragedy the British Jewish community had long feared — “the day we hoped we would never see, but which deep down, we knew would come.”

“For so long we have witnessed an unrelenting wave of Jew hatred on our streets, on campuses, on social media, and elsewhere — this is the tragic result,” Mirvis wrote in a post on X.

“This not only an assault on the Jewish community, but an attack on the very foundations of humanity and the values of compassion, dignity, and respect which we all share,” he continued.

Our hearts are shattered.

Emerging from the holy fast of Yom Kippur, British Jews are now grasping the full extent of today’s terror attack at the Heaton Park Synagogue in Manchester.

This is the day we hoped we would never see, but which deep down, we knew would come.

For…

— Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis (@chiefrabbi) October 2, 2025

Pinchas Goldschmidt, president of the Conference of European Rabbis, also condemned the deadly terrorist attack, calling on the British government to take stronger action to “stamp out murderous ideologies.”

“Jews in Manchester, England, woke up this morning to pray, and were murdered in their own synagogue. Governments from the world over should spare us the statements about fighting antisemitism and instead ensure Jews are safe,” Goldschmidt wrote in a post on X.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar strongly denounced the attack and accused British authorities of inciting hatred, saying the local Jewish community in Britain is “currently suffering from a horrific wave of antisemitism.”

“The truth must be told: blatant and rampant antisemitic and anti-Israeli incitement, as well as calls of support for terror, have recently become a widespread phenomenon in the streets of London, in cities across Britain, and on its campuses,” the top Israeli diplomat said in a post on X.

“The authorities in Britain have failed to take the necessary action to curb this toxic wave of antisemitism and have effectively allowed it to persist,” Saar continued.

“We expect more than words from the Starmer government,” he added, referring to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. “We expect and demand a change of course, effective action, and enforcement against the rampant antisemitic and anti-Israeli incitement in Britain.”

I am appalled by the murderous attack near the Heaton Park Synagogue in Manchester on the morning of the holiest day for the Jewish people: Yom Kippur.
My deepest condolences go to the families who have lost their loved ones,and I wish a swift and full recovery to the injured.…

— Gideon Sa’ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) October 2, 2025

As the investigation continues and the local Jewish community mourns the victims of the deadly attack, the British government has called for an anti-Israel protest scheduled for Saturday in London to be canceled. The demonstration is being organized by a group called Defend Our Juries to oppose the British government’s decision in July to ban the group Palestine Action under anti-terrorism laws.

Raucous anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian demonstrations erupted in London on Yom Kippur on Thursday, following the attack in Manchester.

Pro-Pals took over the streets of central London last night. Set off fireworks in the busiest parts. Chanted for Israel’s destruction. And I don’t see a single police officer. So do racist thugs run our capital now? It’s like a nightmare dystopia. @metpoliceuk pic.twitter.com/AA6VqwNQ4K

— Heidi Bachram (@HeidiBachram) October 2, 2025

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood urged demonstrators to “step back” from plans to hold marches this weekend.

“I do think that carrying on in this way does feel un-British, it feels wrong,” Mahmood said.

However, the anti-Israel group behind protests against the ban on Palestine Action announced it still intends to proceed with the march.

In a statement, the group called on local police to “prioritize protecting the community, rather than arresting those peacefully holding signs” in support of Palestine Action.

Mahmood also said she was “disappointed” that pro-Palestinian protests went ahead on Thursday in the aftermath of the synagogue attack.

As British Jews gathered to observe Yom Kippur, widespread anti-Israel demonstrations erupted across the UK. In Manchester, a pro-Palestinian protest unfolded in the city center, while in London, clashes broke out between police and demonstrators opposing the Israeli navy’s interception of a Gaza-bound flotilla.

Decent folk mourn the horrific terrorist murder of Jews in Manchester

Yet this bunch see fit to hoot and toot in London; perhaps they are pro Hamas? pic.twitter.com/cI5Dm1xHoN

— Richard Tice MP (@TiceRichard) October 2, 2025

US President Donald Trump in the Oval office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, Sept. 30, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ken Cedeno

US President Donald Trump gave Palestinian Hamas terrorists until Sunday evening to accept his proposal to end the nearly two-year-old war with US ally Israel in the Gaza Strip or “all HELL” would break out.

“An agreement must be reached with Hamas by Sunday Evening at SIX (6) PM, Washington, DC time,” Trump posted on social media on Friday. “Every Country has signed on! If this LAST CHANCE agreement is not reached, all HELL, like no one has ever seen before, will break out against Hamas.”

The plan specifies an immediate ceasefire, an exchange of all hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, a staged Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the disarmament of Hamas, and the introduction of a transitional government led by an international body.

Trump first presented his plan to leaders and officials from Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Pakistan, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, on the sidelines of last week’s UN General Assembly.

Mediators Qatar and Egypt then shared the 20-point plan with Hamas late on Monday after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared alongside Trump at the White House and endorsed the document, saying it satisfied Israel‘s war aims.

‘INTENSIVE DISCUSSION’ UNDER WAY ON HAMAS RESPONSE

Hamas was not involved in the negotiations that led to the proposal, which calls on the Islamist group to disarm, a demand it has previously rejected.

Asked whether his group had finalized its response to Trump’s Gaza plan, a Hamas official told Reuters late on Thursday: “Not yet, intensive discussion is under way.” The official said Hamas had held talks with Arab mediators, Turkey and Palestinian factions to shape “the Palestinian response.”

On Tuesday, Trump said he would give Hamas three to four days to accept the plan. On Friday he described Hamas as a “ruthless and violent threat in the Middle East.”

In his Truth Social post on Friday, Trump made an apparent reference to Israel‘s offensive in Gaza City. He said remaining Hamas terrorists in Gaza are trapped and “will be hunted down, and killed” without a deal, and warned “innocent Palestinians” to leave for safer areas of Gaza.

Israel blocked Gaza City’s main road on Thursday and has told its million residents to flee south, warning it was their last chance to escape a major offensive.

TRUMP PLAN ‘A WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY,’ UN AID CHIEF SAYS

“President Trump’s Gaza initiative opens a window of opportunity. It offers both a chance for Palestinians to receive life-saving aid at the scale urgently needed, and to bring the hostages home,” UN aid chief Tom Fletcher said in a statement on Friday. “We are ready and eager to act.”

Trump’s plan calls for aid to Gaza to be distributed without interference by neutral international groups, with the UN promising 170,000 metric tons ready to enter.

Israel began its offensive in Gaza after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken as hostages back to Gaza. Israel responded with a military campaign aimed at freeing the hostages and dismantling Hamas’s military capabilities and political rule in neighboring Gaza.

Trump said in his Friday post that “more than 25,000 Hamas ‘soldiers’ have already been killed.” Hamas rarely discloses fatalities among its fighters.

Anti-Israel protesters demonstrate in front of the Central Bank of Ireland against the sale of Israeli bonds throughout the EU, in Dublin, Ireland, May 27, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne

Ireland is poised to curb planned sanctions on Israel, blunting a law central to its protest over the war in Gaza, after pressure from business groups concerned about the impact on investment, four people with knowledge of the matter said.

Ireland‘s government is one of the most outspoken critics of Israel‘s campaign against Hamas in Gaza but, unlike others such as Spain, it hosts the European headquarters of some of the US’s biggest companies, making it uniquely vulnerable to pressure from the US.

Mainly US-owned foreign multinationals employ around 11 percent of Irish workers and contribute most of the corporate tax that makes up almost a third of all Irish tax receipts.

Ireland has been preparing to sanction trade with Israeli communities in the West Bank and East Jerusalem for a year, provoking criticism from Israel, international company lobby groups, and threats of reprisal from US lawmakers.

Dublin would be moving ahead of any wider sanctions by the European Union, unnerving local business.

Business representatives in Ireland have this year urged the government to delay any law and reduce its scope, the sources said, to avoid antagonizing US companies and investors, discouraging them from investing in Ireland.

Government officials are now poised to limit the scope of the legislation to goods only, catching a handful of products imported from Israeli settlements such as fruit that are worth just 200,000 euros ($234,660.00) a year.

This would exclude the wider category of services that opposition parties have demanded be added, a move the government has been considering. Critics argue this could pull foreign multinational software companies, for example, into unworkable sanctions.

Although no final decision has been taken, the people said the government would likely follow the advice of some senior officials and business organizations who argued against widening the bill to services.

AWAITING ADVICE FROM ATTORNEY GENERAL

Foreign Minister Simon Harris has told parliament he would receive advice from the attorney general “shortly” on whether services can be included. He previously flagged concerns that it may not be legally possible.

A spokesperson for the foreign ministry pointed Reuters to comments by Harris in parliament on Thursday that the bill would be brought for debate before parliament breaks for holidays in mid-December but that wider European measures would have far more weight.

Business lobby groups and company representatives have in recent months visited government officials, underscoring their concerns that the bill will further upset relations with the US and Israel, the people said.

In those meetings, company representatives have argued that penalizing Israeli settlements could hit multinationals from the US, allied with Israel, and imperil investment in Ireland, an argument that resonated with some officials, the people said.

The Irish Business and Employers Confederation, the biggest industry lobby group, whose members include pharmaceutical, software, and banking companies, has publicly shared its concerns about Ireland‘s stance, saying the US could penalize multinational companies in Ireland for boycotting Israel.

FRAUGHT RELATIONS

The attention Dublin is getting over its stance on Gaza is coming at a delicate time for Ireland, whose pro-business corporate tax policies have helped turbocharge its economy.

Ireland sells around a third of its goods exports to the US, and is in the crosshairs of US President Donald Trump for sending far more to the US than it imports. It exported more than 72 billion euros of goods to the US last year.

Ireland is the European home of some of the biggest US tech firms, international finance, as well as a production hub for pharmaceutical giants who make and ship key elements of drugs such as Viagra, Botox and weight-loss treatment Zepbound.

Dublin is also pushing for a swift vote on proposals from the EU Commission to suspend free-trade arrangements on Israeli goods, although getting this through in the face of German opposition is in question.

After Ireland became the first EU country to commit to trade restrictions last October, Slovenia introduced a ban on imports of goods in August while Belgium, Spain, and the Netherlands announced similar bans on goods last month.

Ireland‘s relations with Israel have been fraught. Last December, Israel shut its embassy in Dublin amid a row over Ireland‘s criticism of its war in Gaza, including Ireland‘s recognition of a Palestinian state last year.

“I believe the idea that foreign investors would leave Ireland has been much exaggerated,” said Alice-Mary Higgins, a member of the joint committee on foreign affairs and trade, charged with scrutinizing the bill, who backs the inclusion of services.

“What is the alternative? To reward profiteering in goods and services on stolen land?”

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