From the Liveblog of
Sunday, October 5, 2025
Security bulked up as large crowd expected at Manchester October 7 vigil
Zev Stub is the Times of Israel's Diaspora Affairs correspondent.
Manchester’s Jews are holding a ceremony under heavy security marking two years since Hamas launched its assault on Israel on October 7, 2023, days after the community suffered its own deadly attack.
The Manchester Stands with Israel rally is taking place outside the Manchester Cathedral, with security provided by police and the Community Security Trust, a security and advocacy group for British Jews, organizers say.
The event honoring fallen IDF soldiers and those who were murdered during the October 7 attacks, as well as calling for the release of the remaining hostages held by Hamas, had been planned before Thursday’s attack at the Heaton Park Synagogue, in which a knifeman assaulted congregants attending Yom Kippur services, killing two.
Organizers expect the ceremony to draw a larger crowd following the attack.
“We all stand together in Manchester,” reads a post on X promoting the event.
ON SUNDAY OCTOBER 5th WE ALL STAND TOGETHER IN MANCHESTER
FOR ISRAEL, OUR HOSTAGES & OUR MANCHESTER JEWISH COMMUNITY
Rally only at 11.30am outside Manchester Cathedral alongside the River Irwell
Please note that there are NO trams from Bury to Crumpsell.@JewishMCR… pic.twitter.com/6YEMsep6bv
— NW Friends of Israel (@NorthWestFOI) October 4, 2025
A larger rally marking the two-year anniversary of October 7 is planned in Trafalgar Square in London later today.
The Times of Israel Community.