Stacey Solomon last night shared her feelings on the Manchester synagogue attack as she said being Jewish feels ‘scary’ and ‘heartbreaking’.
A 35-year-old television figure shared an emotional response on social media following a tragic incident at Heaton Park Synagogue, where Islamist terrorist Jihad Al-Shamie took the lives of two innocent individuals.
His victims, who were both members of Manchester’s Jewish community, have been named as Adrian Daulby, 53, and 66-year-old Melvin Cravitz.
Police last night arrested two men aged in their 30s and a woman in her 60s on suspicion of planning a terrorist attack.
Through an Instagram post, Stacey aligned with broadcaster and barrister Rob Rinder in denouncing the attacks and expressed her concern about the rising fear for her safety and that of her Jewish community.
‘It is heartbreaking to learn about the attack at a Manchester synagogue on Yom Kippur. My thoughts and prayers are with all those affected,’ she expressed.
‘I’m also mindful of everyone currently feeling fearful for their safety and their loved ones’ due to their identity. Being Jewish feels frightening, and that is truly heart-wrenching.’
Stacey also expressed solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, stating: ‘As I’ve mentioned before, my thoughts are with the innocent individuals in Gaza too. Being proudly Jewish and condemning today’s appalling attack doesn’t negate my feelings for the other.’
‘I realise no matter what I say. Someone somewhere won’t like it. But all I really have to say is that none of this is ok.’
Stacey Solomon has revealed being Jewish feels ‘scary’ and ‘heartbreaking’ in the wake of the Manchester attacks on a synagogue
In a statement posted on Instagram last night, Stacey revealed how being Jewish can make you fear for yourself and your loved ones
Rob Rinder’s moving post on the attack in Manchester yesterday
This statement followed Mr. Rinder, 47, whose grandfather escaped to Britain after losing his family in the Holocaust, as he similarly urged for unity within the UK’s Jewish community.
In a tweet, he criticised those who still allowed anti-Semitism to cloud their view on a horrific attack that left two worshippers stabbed to death on Yom Kippur – the most sacred and solemn day in the Jewish calendar.
‘Some still answer this atrocity with ‘what about…”, he said.
He also urged: ‘If you believe in Britain (wherever you’re from & whatever your faith) you must stand with us.
‘Many Jews cannot imagine a future here and history tells us what follows when that happens.’
Al-Shamie, who was shot dead minutes after the attack, carried out his murderous rampage on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar.
He first rammed his black Kia Picanto hatchback into crowds of Jewish worshippers at 9.31am, before he got out and started ‘stabbing everyone he could get to’.
Videos on YouTube show Al-Shamie and his two brothers playing in the back yard of a home on Crescent Road, which is around a 20-minute walk from the synagogue he later targeted.
Jihad Al-Shamie, 35, who was shot dead minutes after he targeted Heaton Park Synagogue in Manchester yesterday. It is believed he was a father and is pictured holding a child
The clips were shared by the killer’s father Faraj Al-Shamie, who is believed to be a trauma doctor who has worked for several NGOs in warzones across the world.
It is understood the family has lived in Greater Manchester for at least 30 years – and currently live in Prestwich, around two miles from the scene of the terror attack.
Police yesterday arrested two men aged in their 30s and a woman in her 60s on suspicion of planning a terrorist attack.
Al-Shamie’s name was last night linked to a property in the town – with a neighbour recognising his face from photographs of the synagogue attacker.
Al-Shamie is understood to have worked as a tutor teaching English and computer programming.
Two men have been confirmed dead in yesterday’s horror. Three other Jewish worshippers were rushed to hospital with serious injuries, one with stab wounds and the other hurt after being hit by the car.
