Jewish communities 'do not feel safe' in wake of Manchester synagogue attack, MSP warns

Martin Gallagher, a former Police Scotland superintendent, said he expected that a “patrol matrix” of firearms officers would have been deployed close to sites such as the Heaton Park Synagogue, allowing police to act quickly after initial reports of the attack.

Mr Gallagher, who was seconded to the Metropolitan Police's forward intelligence team during the G8 summit in Scotland in 2005, and was at the frontline when policing riots in Gleneagles as well as Edinburgh, also warned that although the attack appeared to be isolated, it comes amidst escalating tensions and threats against Jewish communities the world over.

Jackson Carlaw, the former Scottish Conservative leader, described the events in Manchester as “horrendous,” and said that emotions were “acute” with communities feeling unsafe. He added that antisemitism “must be confronted and defeated,” writing on X that “far too many have been complacent.”

Greater Manchester Police declared a major incident after receiving reports of a car driving towards members of the public, and a man being stabbed, shortly after 9.30am on Thursday. When paramedics arrived at the scene, they found four people injured - police said the injuries were a result of both the vehicle and stab wounds.

The force later added that two people had died following the attacks, with three more members of the public in a serious condition. Another person - a man believed to be the suspect - was shot by Greater Manchester Police and is also believed to be dead.

Amid growing concerns for the safety of Jewish communities across the country, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, who flew back to the UK early from a summit in Denmark to chair an emergency meeting, has said there will be extra police “assets” at synagogues across the country. First Minister John Swinney said that Police Scotland will be working with communities in the wake of the incident, adding that safety at places of worship causes him “signicant concern.”

Mr Swinney said: “Individuals must be able to live in safety in our country and they must be able to worship in safety. Police Scotland will be considering what steps need to be taken to make sure communities can be assured of their safety and they will, of course, have my full support and encouragement to do so.”

The Community Security Trust, a charity which provides security advice and equipment to Jewish schools, organisations and synagogues, said it was working closely with police in Manchester and “across the country” to ensure security at synagogues, and in the wider Jewish community, is “as strong as it can be” in the coming days and weeks.

Speaking to Sky News, Mr Gallagher said: “We’ve got to consider that although we’re dealing with an isolated incident here, we’re doing that against a backdrop of an increase in incidents of this nature, and the motivation for them appearing to change and evolve.

“Obviously the highest levels of government will be very concerned about where the community tensions are now simmering, and result in attacks such as this, and are we in a phase where such attacks will continue? That’s really where the government will be focused.

“The tensions round about the Palestinian situation are bubbling over into these attacks against Jewish communities around the world, and I think it’s important we acknowledge that. This isn’t a UK issue, this is a worldwide issue. We’ve had incidents recently in Australia … there’s an increasing tension and increasing threat to the Jewish community.”

Mr Gallagher, the author of ‘Terror for Profit’, a book scrutinising the relationship between terrorism and organised crime, added that police would have been “alive” to the rising tensions facing the Jewish community, and the fact that it was Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar.

“I would have expected a patrol matrix to be close to specific sites such as this synagogue for firearms officers, so I would be very surprised if it’s by chance that those officers were on the scene so quickly,” he explained. “I think it will come out in due course that the police had used their intelligence, conducted a threat assessment, and were able to respond.

“Unfortunately, the attacker appeared to have been an unknown. The police have been able to put in mitigation places to put resources where they are needed - that hasn’t prevented the attack, but it has prevented the attack going on for a significant period of time.”

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Elsewhere, Scottish political leaders expressed shock and dismay at the scenes in Manchester. Mr Swinney said he was “horrified” by the Yom Kippur attack, adding: “My thoughts are with the victims, their families and all Jewish communities. Antisemitism is an evil we must confront and stand resolutely against.

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar wrote on X: “My thoughts are with all those affected and the wider Jewish community. Yom Kippur should be a time of peace and reflection, but instead they have been the victim of hate and violence. We must stand against antisemitism and all forms of prejudice.

Scottish Greens co-leader Ross Greer also extended his condolences to those impacted by the attack.

He said: “Our thoughts, prayers and solidarity are with the victims and the whole community at Heaton Park synagogue. Antisemitism is an evil which must have no place in our society.

“The fact that this horrific attack came on Yom Kippur will only compound the pain felt by our Jewish friends and neighbours and cast a long shadow over what should be a day of peace and reflection.”