The six minutes that brought terror to Britain’s Jews

Credit: Facebook

This was to be the celebration of the Holy Day in the Jewish calendar.

But about half an hour after their service in Yom Kipur, several hundred fans in the Hiton -Park community in the synagogue in Manchester were interrupted from the sound of a screeching crash and screams outside.

Six minutes Terror followedending with two dead at the hands of a suspect terrorist who was shot by the police

The boom began when the Kia black car, passing at speed along the lively Middleton -Road,, according to reports, turned to the Synagogue Security Member, who stood at the gate outside.

Exactly at 9.31 in the morning, becoming a witness to the incident, the member of the public scored 999.

But, when they reported what they saw, a man dressed in all blacks rose from a car with a knife, and began to strike a blow, an already wounded guard.

Dressed in what seemed like a bulletproof jacket and a suspect vest for suicide, then the man headed to the entrance to the synagogue.

Yom Kipur, the Day of Atonement, is the holy day on the Jewish calendar, and the synagogue was more busy than usual.

Such was the risk for the Jewish community of Great Britain since the attacks of 2023 on October 7, which the synagogues throughout the country now ensure security.

Therefore, when the attacker made for the front door of the holy building, he was disputed by those who were there to ensure the safety of believers.

It is clear, at least four people outside the synagogue were stabbed in A few terrifying moments It followed.

Two died, while three more were injured.

Witnesses described how the attacker used his knife to strike at the synagogue window, trying to go inside.

Fortunately, it seems that the doors of the building were securely locked from the inside.

Meanwhile, the armed police rushed to the scene, and just six minutes after receiving the first call, 999 officers carrying automatic weapons challenged the suspect.

They opened fire at 9.37 in the morning, neutralizing the striker, who fell to the ground just yards from the entrance to the synagogue.

As witnesses, some with the phones of the camera, looked, the man seemed to try to get up.

One observer shouted to the armed officers: “Shoot him, he has a bomb … He is trying to press the button.”

The second salvo of shots sounded, and the suspect was still lying on the ground.

Nearby, the victims also lay, and four minutes later, at 9.41 in the morning, paramedics from the ambulance service of the north -west arrived at the scene and began to treat the wounded.

One delivery driver who was at Midleton Road at that time said that he initially suggested that he was a witness to a traffic accident.

But then he realized that something was unfolding much more terrible.

He described how he could see one person lying on the ground, while others shouted nearby.

He explained that when the suspect began to try to break into the synagogue, the armed police arrived and shot him.

“After a few seconds, the police arrived, they gave him a couple of warnings, he did not listen, so they opened fire,” the witness said.

Chava Levin, who calls himself a religious Jew and lives next to the synagogue, described that she was a witness after the attack.

She said: “I was on the street and heard a knock, and I thought it could be a fireworks. My husband went outside, and then ran inside and said: “There was a terrorist attack.”

“I talked to someone, who said that she was traveling, and saw how the car drove randomly, and it crashed into the gate [of the synagogue]Field

“She thought that maybe he had a heart attack. At that moment, when he got out of the car, he began to strike someone next to him. He went to the guard and tried to break into the synagogue. He was in the yard.

“Someone barricaded the door. Everything is in full shock. “

The woman whose husband was inside the synagogue said that she was “sick” from anxiety, because she could not make contact with him from the moment of attack.

“We are just waiting for the news,” she said in a police cordon with a police helicopter soaring above her head. “I haven’t even dressed yet, I just ran out in my pajamas.”

Inside the synagogue, the service was headed by Daniel Walker, the rabbi of the community.

People at the scene described how the rabbi remained calm when he tried to calm the community immediately after indignation.

On images published on social networks, it could be seen in a suit, traditional white clothes, which is worn on Jewish high holidays.

At the bottom of the bathrobe, it seems, a possible spot of red blood. This suggests that he may have rushed

The Jewish population of Manchester is the largest in the UK outside London.

Since 2011, the number of Jews living in the city has increased by about 20 percent, a total of 30,000 people.

Of these, many Jews live in the north of Manchester, in areas such as Presvich, Whitefield and Broton.

The location of the terrorist attack on Thursday, Crumpsall, is one of the areas in the north of the city.

After the attack, the police officers were sent to all the synagogues of the city, but since the news about horror began to spread, all Yom Kipur services were canceled when the Jews warned not to be present.