Jewish community members stood in silence outside Heaton Park Hebrew Synagogue in Crumpsall, Manchester, to mark one week since a terrorist attack killed two of their members. Dozens of local Jews, some with arms linked, paid tribute to the victims during a vigil led by Rabbi Daniel Walker.
The attack occurred last Thursday during Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, when Jihad Al-Shamie drove his car at Jews gathering for worship. The 35-year-old attacker then used a knife to attack others and attempted to storm the synagogue while wearing a fake suicide belt, before being shot dead by armed police.
Victims remembered as heroes
The two men killed were father-of-three Melvin Cravitz, 66, and Adrian Daulby, 53, who has been described as a "quiet hero" for blocking the synagogue doors during the attack. Al-Shamie had called 999 during his rampage to pledge allegiance to the so-called Islamic State terror group.
Rabbi Walker told mourners that "evil tried to defile these steps" but that "evil will not prevail". Both victims' families attended the vigil, which took place amid a heavy police presence.
Community expresses anger at leaders
Raphi Bloom, representing the Jewish Representative Council for Greater Manchester and Region, expressed the community's frustration with political leaders. "Two kind, gentle innocent men, Melvin and Adrian… were murdered on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year, by an evil Islamic terrorist, simply because they were Jewish," he said.
"As a Jewish community, we are mourning, we are scared, we feel isolated, and we are angry, very angry because we screamed this would happen and no one listened," Bloom added. He urged Jews not to be "cowed" and called on others to challenge antisemitism wherever they encounter it.
Political leadership criticised
Marc Levy, chief executive of the Jewish Representative Council, described the need for British Jews to live behind gates with security guards as a "moral failing in our society". Local political leaders, including Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham and Manchester City Council leader Bev Craig, faced accusations of "gaslighting" the Jewish community.
The criticism centres partly on Manchester's weekly pro-Palestinian marches, which community leaders say have involved antisemitic chanting. A separate controversy involves a planned gig by punk duo Bob Vylan at Manchester University Students' Union next month.
University gig controversy
The Jewish Representative Council wants the Bob Vylan event cancelled after the musicians chanted "death, death to the IDF (Israel Defence Forces)" during a Glastonbury performance in June. BBC director-general Tim Davie subsequently called the broadcast "a very significant mistake" and branded the performance "antisemitic" and "deeply disturbing".
Bloom said the lack of action from various authorities was "shameful considering what our community has gone through". "We're fearful. One of the reasons we're fearful is because people like Vylan our coming to our city, exhorting their audience to go and hunt Zionists in the street," he said.
Andy Burnham and Bev Craig have not responded to requests for comment from PA Media. The University of Manchester directed enquiries to the Students' Union, which declined to comment.
Sources used: "PA Media" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
