British associate of Manchester synagogue attacker admits terrorism offense

A British man pleads guilty to helping the perpetrator of a deadly terror attack on a Manchester synagogue in October to carry out earlier reconnaissance on a UK defense site.

Mohammad Asim Bashir, 31, appeared at London’s Old Bailey court and admitted driving Jihad Al-Shamie to the UK Defence Academy in Oxfordshire, central England, in August 2025.

Less than two months later, Al-Shamie drove a car into pedestrians before attacking people with a knife at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue on Yom Kippur. One man died from stab wounds and another was accidentally shot dead by the police.

Al-Shamie, a 35-year-old British citizen of Syrian descent, told police he was acting for Islamic State before officers shot him dead.

Police said when Bashir was charged that the offense was not directly linked to the synagogue attack.