Bloodstained rabbi hailed 'hero' for stopping more horror in Manchester attack

A hero rabbi is being praised for saving lives by remaining "incredibly calm" throughout this morning's harrowing synagogue attack.

Rabbi Daniel Walker, who was seen with bloodstained robes outside the Heaton Park synagoguethis morning, kept a cool head as he barricaded the doors to prevent a device-wielding attacker entering the place of worship. Two people were killed in the attack, with three more in a serious condition in hospital. The suspected attacker was shot dead by armed police.

Today's attack came on the Jewish festival of Yom Kippur - the holiest day in the Jewish calendar in which Jews solemnly pray and fast in atonement. Part of the day involves adherents gathering at synagogue to worship as a community.

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A friend of an eyewitness told the Daily Mail: "My friend saw him crash the car near the synagogue. At first she thought he'd had a heart attack. Then he got out and started stabbing everyone he could get to.

"Rabbi Walker was incredibly calm, he shut the doors to the synagogue to stop him getting inside. He barricaded everyone inside. He is a hero, this could have been even worse."

Rabbi Walker has been spiritual leader of the congregation since 2008, and also serves as co-chair of the community and interfaith committees of the Jewish Representative Council of Greater Manchester. He is also the chairman of The Friendship Circle a charity which "enriches the lives of Jewish children and adults with physical and learning disabilities".

Members of the Jewish community were seen weeping and holding each other for support as they gathered outside the police cordon earlier today.

There were a large number of people inside the when the attacker struck.

One witness told how he saw a a man “bleeding on the floor,” then another person lying in front of a car while members of the public shouted in the background. He then saw a man carrying a knife and “stabbing the window of a nearby building “trying to get in”.

Police officers are now on patrol outside a number of synagogues up and down the country. The Reading Hebrew Congregation in Reading is now guarded, following the fatal attack outside Heaton Park synagogue in Manchester. It comes after Keir Starmer said "additional police assets" will be deployed at synagogues across the country.

There has been an outpouring of support from faith leaders in the hours after the attack.

Manchester Council of Mosques issued a statement in which it urged the community to stand "united against hatred".

Meanwhile, the Right Reverend Dr David Walker, Bishop of Manchester, called for prayers for "the victims, their families, and the wider Jewish community".