Manchester's Jewish House of Worship Attack Victims Named as Interior Minister Confirms Attacker Was Unknown to Police
The two individuals fatally wounded in yesterday's attack on a synagogue in the northern English city have been named as 53-year-old Adrian Daulby and sixty-six-year-old Melvin Cravitz, police have said.
Greater Manchester police said formal identification is yet to take place but their relatives have been informed and specialist support staff are in contact.
Brief but Violent Attack Unfolds
The victims were killed when an perpetrator used a vehicle to ram into the grounds of the local Jewish worship center in north Manchester, then attacked worshippers in a brief rampage that concluded when armed officers shot at him twice.
Additional individuals were critically wounded in the violent incident on Judaism's holiest day, the most sacred occasion in the Hebrew year.
Attacker Identified
Law enforcement named the assailant on yesterday evening as Jihad al-Shamie, thirty-five, a British citizen of Syrian descent.
Greater Manchester police disclosed that additional individuals – two men in their thirties and a female in her 60s – had been arrested “on suspicion of planning, organization and encouragement of terrorist activities”.
Government Statements
The interior minister has confirmed that the individual who carried out the violent incident in Greater Manchester was not known to the police.
“In terms of the perpetrator, this person was not known to the security services,” commented Shabana Mahmood.
“He has reportedly been fatally wounded at the scene, but the police investigations will now proceed rapidly.”
Postmortem examinations of the deceased – each individual are from the local area – will take place during the day.
Heightened Protection Measures
MI5 and counter-terrorism police will function at a elevated readiness level in the near future, reflecting apprehension that the recent violent incident may be followed by others.
Security presence at synagogues nationwide is to be increased.
Community Effects
Perceptions of security in the UK's Jewish community have deteriorated significantly in the recent period, according to the most comprehensive study of UK Jewish residents.
The investigation found thirty-five percent of Jewish individuals felt unsafe in the UK in 2025, compared with 9% in two years prior.
Updates will follow on the latest developments on this situation as we receive them.
