Faith leaders condemn attack amid warning of ‘growing tide of religious hatred’

A “growing tide of religious hatred” cannot be ignored, an imam has said in the wake of the Manchester synagogue attack as he warned violence in the Middle East “must not be allowed to poison our streets in Britain”.

The fatal incident as Jewish people observed the holiest day in their religious calendar has been roundly condemned by various faith and community leaders.

No official information has been released on the attacker’s background, religion or possible motivation.

The Church of England’s current most senior bishop Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell said he was “very shocked” to hear what had happened and was praying that “all may live alongside each other in harmony and respect”.

Imam Qari Asim, co-chairman of the British Muslim Network, said he was “horrified” by an attack which was “utterly abhorrent and has no place in our society”.

He said: “Places of worship must always be sanctuaries of peace and safety — not scenes of fear and hatred.

“We cannot ignore the growing tide of religious hatred in our country. Whether it is Islamophobia, antisemitism or any form of bigotry, we must confront it together – with unity and courage, not silence.

“As a British Muslim leader let me be clear – antisemitism in all its forms is totally unacceptable.”

He said communities of different faiths must be able to live together peacefully.

Imam Asim said: “The bloodshed and violence in the Middle East – which is excruciatingly painful to witness for all of us – must not be allowed to poison our streets in Britain. We must never let pain abroad be used to justify hatred and violence against anyone at home.

“British Jews, British Muslims, and all communities must be able to live together without violence, intimidation and the fear of being targeted because of their faith.

“Together, we must reject hatred, resist division, and reaffirm our shared commitment to peace, human dignity, and coexistence.

“We ask all communities to remain vigilant and supportive, in particular around places of worship. This is a moment for all communities to come together, and build a future rooted in respect, understanding and shared values.”

Rabbi Jonathan Romain, emeritus rabbi of Maidenhead Synagogue, said it appeared tensions over the war in Gaza had “spilled over” to the UK, despite efforts to stop that happening.

He told the PA news agency: “The real tragedy is, of course that the war in Gaza, which is tragic in itself, has sort of spilled over into the United Kingdom.

“For the last two years, we were desperately trying to make sure that whatever was going on in the Middle East was not imported here. This has shown that our worst fears have been realised.”

Meanwhile, the British Muslim Trust described the attack as “despicable” and “cowardly”, and said it stands with the Jewish community.

The trust, a Government-funded organisation selected this year to monitor incidents of anti-Muslim hate, warned no-one should be allowed to “exploit this violence to deepen the division they seek”.

Trust chief executive, Akeela Ahmed, said: “There is never, and can never be, any place for this sort of despicable, cowardly violence in our society.

“The British Muslim Trust stands with all victims of hate, and in particular today with the Jewish community, the people of Manchester and the Community Security Trust.

“We utterly condemn this disgraceful attack and offer our support to those left to pick up the pieces.

“Finally, in worrying times like these we ask Muslims and all communities to look out for each other and remain vigilant. We know there are some who will seek to exploit this violence to deepen the division they seek – we must not let them.”

Raphi Bloom, co-chairman of North West Friends of Israel, said he believed the incident was the “culmination” of a “tsunami of Jew hatred that the Jewish community have been experiencing” since the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7 2023.

He told BBC Radio 4’s World at One programme: “We knew this was going to happen. We feared it would happen.

“This hatred has been allowed to go unchecked for far too long and this is the tragic and horrendous culmination of people wishing to target the Jewish community in the UK for a conflict that is happening 2,500 miles away.

“We’re all entitled to a view. I have nothing against anybody who wants to be pro-Palestinian, but when you import that conflict onto our streets and you attack the Jewish people for that, that is Jew hatred and we have experienced it in waves for two years.”