REUTERS, Manchester

Two people were killed yesterday when a man drove a car into pedestrians and stabbed a security guard in an attack at a synagogue in England, where worshippers were marking Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar, British police said.

Greater Manchester Police said the suspect, who was wearing a vest that appeared to be an explosive device, was shot dead after officers rushed to the scene at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in the Crumpsall district of the city in northern England.

A video shared on social media and verified by Reuters showed police shooting a man inside the synagogue’s perimeter, while another man lay on the floor in a pool of blood, appearing to wear a traditional Jewish head covering.

“He has a bomb, go away!” an armed police officer shouted to onlookers, just seconds before a gunshot rang out.

Neighbour Angela Crawshaw told Reuters she had seen three policemen aiming guns at a man in the car park of the synagogue, telling him: “Stay down, don’t move or we’ll shoot.”

“Then they did shoot, and he fell to the floor. Then he tried getting up again and moving again, and they shot him again. And then it was just panic ... just noise and panic.”