The ex-wife of Jihad al-Shamie, the man who carried out a deadly antisemitic attack on a Manchester synagogue, has said he was 'intimidating, aggressive and controlling' but showed no signs of extremism before the assault. The woman, who married Shamie in an Islamic ceremony in 2021, told the Guardian that he was 'glued to his phone' watching Arabic news channels but did not appear radicalised.
Police revealed on Wednesday that Shamie, 35, called 999 during the attack and pledged allegiance to Islamic State. He was not on the radar of counter-terror officers. His ex-wife said she now believes he was 'living a lie with his religion' and that he had never seemed radicalised during their turbulent three-year relationship. 'Throughout [their relationship] he hasn't talked about any of that,' she said.
Shamie, born in Syria but moved to Britain as a child, attacked a Heaton Park synagogue on Yom Kippur, killing two worshippers. The Guardian previously revealed he was on police bail for an alleged rape at the time. It also emerged he had Islamic marriages to three women simultaneously, fathering two children with one.
The ex-wife described Shamie as 'controlling and manipulating', discouraging her from drinking energy drinks, encouraging religious practices, and refusing divorce requests. However, she said he never appeared radicalised and was a 'normal' practising Muslim, barely mentioning the Gaza conflict. One witness heard him shout: 'This is what you’re going to get for killing our children' during the attack.
Police said Shamie pledged allegiance to Islamic State in a 999 call but reiterated he was not known to counter-terror officers. He had a criminal past and was under investigation for rape. Officers attended his home earlier this year over safeguarding concerns. Another wife described how Shamie led a double life, using multiple online personas, and was initially nice but became controlling and aggressive.
