Could deadly Yom Kippur attack in Manchester have been prevented?

Police refuse to say whether they examined the telephone of the Manchester terrorist, who was arrested just days earlier and investigated over two separate rape allegations, raising concerns that authorities failed to take action following warning signs.

By World Israel News Staff

Police in Manchester, England, have refused to disclose whether they inspected the personal cellphone of an accused rapist and Islamic extremist who carried out a deadly terror attack at a local synagogue while out on bail.

On Sunday night, The Financial Times reported that the Greater Manchester Police would not answer questions regarding their investigation into Jihad Al-Shamie, prior to the October 2 attack on the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue which left two people dead.

Al-Shamie, a Syrian-born man who had been naturalized in Britain, had attended an extremist mosque, home to an imam known for antisemitic rhetoric.

In the early 2020s, neighbors reported to police concerns that Al-Shamie exhibited fanatical Islamist behavior.

Accused of rape by two different women in December 2024 and September 2025, Al-Shamie was arrested this September in connection with the complaints.

Authorities released Al-Shamie on bail days before he carried out the Yom Kippur attack, which left Melvin Cravitz, 66, and Adrian Daulby, 53, fatally injured.

During the attack, police officers shot and killed Al-Shamie.

In the immediate aftermath of the terror attack, police found evidence on Al-Shamie’s phone that he had become radicalized online, where he received terrorist material through social media, including from other members of a WhatsApp chat group.

Earlier this month, authorities announced that one of Al-Shamie’s contacts online, Mohammad Bashir, had been indicted for sending Al-Shamie content aimed at encouraging him to carry out a terror attack.

“Our prosecutors have concluded that there is sufficient evidence to charge Mohammad Bashir with one offence of preparation of terrorist acts and three offences of sharing terrorist publications with Al-Shamie and others with the intent to encourage acts of terrorism,” said Frank Ferguson, chief crown prosecutor of the Crown Prosecution Service Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division.

The revelation raised questions regarding the conduct of the Greater Manchester Police during their September investigation of Al-Shamie.

While The Financial Times asked police whether they examined Al-Shamie’s phone during the investigation, including when he was in custody – a step which could have tipped authorities off to his Islamist radicalization – the department refused to respond to the question.

The police department also said that the September 2025 probe of Al-Shamie was now being investigated by the national police watchdog agency.

When asked about the handling of material obtained from Al-Shamie, the department said that the matter was now “subject to…investigation” by the Independent Office for Police Conduct.