"Significant development in the investigation": Another suspect arrested in the Manchester synagogue terror attack case
About a year after the deadly terror event on Yom Kippur, in which two worshipers were murdered, authorities in the UK announced that a 49-year-old Iraqi citizen is accused of failing to report to authorities information about terrorist activity related to the attack. During the bloody attack, a Syrian-born British citizen drove a car toward the worshipers and stabbed one of them.
The Counter Terrorism Policing North West unit announced that Hekmat Omar Ali Hakim, 49, an Iraqi citizen living in the Manchester area, was arrested yesterday (Thursday) and is suspected of the offense of failing to disclose information regarding terrorist activity, under the UK Terrorism Act. Today he will be brought before Westminster Magistrates' Court in London.
Police emphasize that the charge is directly related to the attack at the Heaton Park synagogue in Manchester on the morning of Yom Kippur, October 2, 2025. At this stage, authorities are not detailing what information Hakim is alleged to have possessed, when he became aware of it, or what the nature of his connection to the terrorist was.
Hakim was already arrested on May 26 of this year, when officers from the Counter Terrorism unit and Greater Manchester Police conducted a raid to locate suspects. He was arrested then on suspicion of the same offense, questioned, and released on bail the following day. His arrest was the eighth in the extensive investigation opened following the attack. Now, after about three more months of investigation and with the approval of the prosecution, it was decided to charge him, and he was arrested as stated.
Assistant Chief Constable Rob Potts, the operational lead for the Counter Terrorism Policing North West unit, defined the charge as a "significant development in the investigation."
"Investigators continue to work to establish the full picture behind the attack and identify anyone who may have been involved in it in any way," said Potts, adding that the filing of the charge is the result of prolonged and meticulous investigative work, with the assistance of the British prosecution.
The attack at the Heaton Park synagogue occurred on the morning of Yom Kippur, when Jihad al-Shamie, 35, a Syrian-born British citizen, drove a car toward the synagogue, struck people, and then exited the vehicle armed with a knife and wearing a suicide vest that turned out to be fake. He was shot dead by armed police officers.
Two worshipers were killed: Melvin Cravitz, 66, and Adrian Daulby, 53. Cravitz was stabbed to death by the terrorist. According to findings published later, Daulby was killed by a bullet fired by a police officer at the terrorist, which deflected or ricocheted and hit him while he was helping to block the synagogue doors. Three other men were seriously injured in the attack; they have since all been discharged from hospitals.
The investigation into the attack continues. According to police updates, several people have been arrested since October on various suspicions related to the investigation, and by May the number of detainees had already reached eight. At least one other suspect arrested on suspicion of failing to disclose information about terrorist activity remains under investigation.
