Several hundred mourners gathered Monday at the Heaton Park synagogue in Manchester, United Kingdom, to honor those killed in the Oct. 2, 2025 jihadist attack on the house of worship.
British Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis and Angela Rayner, the British government’s Communities Secretary, were among the public figures who attended the memorial service for Melvin Cravitz and Adrian Daulby, both of whom died following the assault.
Relatives of the victims, along with survivors of the attack, addressed those gathered during Monday’s commemoration.
Rabbi Daniel Walker, one of the survivors who helped keep the attacker from entering the synagogue while worshippers were inside for Yom Kippur services, said the Jewish community now feels less secure than it did in the immediate aftermath of the attack, the BBC reported.
According to the BBC, Walker said a failure to “deal with core problems” has left many members of Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation, as well as Jews across Britain, feeling increasingly exposed and vulnerable.
In a statement issued Tuesday, the Jewish Representative Council of the Greater Manchester and Region said the memorial was also a demonstration of “strength, unity and resilience.” The group added: “Standing together at the Synagogue where so much changed for our community, we showed that hatred will not define us. The terrorist tried to close the Synagogue. Instead, he filled it.”
King Charles and Andy Burnham also sent messages to mark the occasion.
“My wife and I hold all those whose lives were so tragically disrupted by that terrible day most closely in our thoughts and prayers. Though the months have passed, the sense of shock and sorrow remains undiminished. I shall never forget my visit to the synagogue shortly afterwards. It was a deeply moving and heartbreaking experience,” the British monarch wrote.
Burnham wrote on social media: “We send our love and support to the Jewish community in Manchester and beyond” in remembering those “who were killed defending their synagogue last year. My thoughts are with their families and all those who have been affected by the attack.”
