Greater Manchester Mayor Bev Craig has said anti-terror arrests made in the city connected with an alleged threat to the Jewish community 'sent a chill down my spine'.
Counter terror police from the Metropolitan Police descended on Newton Street in the Northern Quarter at 2.34pm on Sunday (September 20), arresting two men on suspicion of terrorism. That action was followed by a second swoop at a hostel on Lancaster Road in Salford and a raid on a flat in Liverpool.
Mayor speaks out on BBC Radio Manchester
The mayor was speaking during her appearance on BBC Radio Manchester's 'In the Hotseat'. She said that during the police operation herself and the deputy mayor were kept updated and that it was 'horrific to see'.
The mayor added: "It sent a chill down my spine that a year on from the evil terrorist attack in Heaton Park synagogue, our Jewish communities were facing that threat again."
"The fact that they find themselves in this situation will no doubt be worrying them."
Increased patrols and terror threat level
She said GMP had stepped up police patrols using extra money from the Home Office 'to keep people safe'. The current national terror threat level is rated as 'severe' which means an attack is considered 'highly likely'.
Ms Craig expressed solidarity with the region's Jewish community.
"In 2026 in modern Britain, you shouldn't feel afraid just for going to pray," she said. "But that's the situation that that much of our community's in.
"We all have to take away what we're going to do to tackle anti-Semitism and what we're going to do to bring communities together.
"This sadly happens too often, and there are too many incidents in my first seven weeks that I've heard about as Mayor, it's horrible."
Further detention and anniversary of attack
On Tuesday, officers from the Metropolitan Police obtained warrants of further detention for both men arrested in Manchester city centre. This means they can be detained in police custody up until Sunday, September 27.
The arrests came shortly before Jews marked the holiest day in their calendar, Yom Kippur, on Monday. It was the first anniversary of the deadly terror attack at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation in which Melvin Cravitz and Adrian Daulby were killed.
