Manchester synagogue attacker pledged allegiance to Islamic State before attack

The suspect behind last week’s deadly car and stabbing terrorist attack outside a Manchester synagogue is believed to have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State, authorities said.

Jihad Al-Shamie, 35, a British citizen of Syrian origin, reportedly called for help to claim responsibility for the attack before pledging allegiance to Islamic State.

“We have conducted assessments into our systems, and I can reiterate that Al-Shamie was never referred to the Prevent program, nor known to counterterrorism police,” Deputy Police Chief Rob Potts said Wednesday.

NFL HOLDS MOMENT OF SILENCE FOR VICTIMS OF YOM KIPPUR TERROR ATTACK IN ENGLAND

Emergency services escort people to safety after a car and knife terrorist attack outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Manchester, England, Thursday, October 2, 2025. Police said two people were killed and four others injured before armed officers shot the suspect. (Christophe Furlong/Getty Images)

British police accidentally shot a victim as they rushed to arrest a synagogue attacker.

The Prevent program is a UK Government initiative to provide people at risk of radicalization with appropriate interventions to prevent them from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism.

Chief of Anti-Terrorism Police Laurence Taylor said on October 3, although Al-Shamie was not known to the counterterrorism team, he was out on bail at the time of the attack after being arrested on suspicion of rape.

Potts said police are now “more confident that he was influenced by extreme Islamist ideology, the 999 call is part of that assessment”.

Although Potts pointed to the call as evidence of Al-Shamie’s motivation, he stressed that authorities must review all evidence collected to determine the motive for the attack.

“This assessment is ongoing and additional factors and motivations may be identified,” Potts added.

A police vehicle parked outside the Manchester Synagogue, where several people were killed on Yom Kippur in what police declared a terrorist incident, in north Manchester, Britain, October 5, 2025. (Hannah McKay/Reuters)

Al-Shamie was shot dead by police outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue after the attack in which he rammed pedestrians with a car before attacking them with a knife. The attacker was carrying what appeared to be an explosive device, but Potts called it a “hoax” and said it was later assessed and confirmed to be “non-viable.”

Two worshipers, Adrian Daulby, 53, and Melvin Cravitz, 66, died in the attack which took place on Yom Kippur, Judaism’s holiest day.

Police later said it was likely one of the two victims was accidentally shot by officers rushing to stop the attack, because Al-Shamie did not have a weapon on him. Reports indicate Daulby was the only one who fired.

Emergency services on scene after a car and stabbing attack outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Manchester, England, October 2, 2025. (Peter Byrne/PA via AP)

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Potts informed reporters Wednesday that three people injured in the attack remained hospitalized.

While investigating whether Al-Shamie had acted alone, police arrested three men and three women on suspicion of “committing, preparing and inciting acts of terrorism.” The Associated Press reported.

Those arrested were not identified and police did not reveal their links, if any, to Al-Shamie. The AP reported that on Saturday a court gave police five more days to detain four of the suspects, while two of them, a man and a woman, were released without further action.