attack

Evidence was found in a building a few hundred metres from Prime Minister Bart De Wever’s Antwerp residence.

Belgian authorities say they have arrested three people in connection with a plot to attack Prime Minister Bart De Wever and other politicians using drone-mounted explosives.

Federal prosecutor Ann Fransen announced the arrests on Thursday and said the group were under investigation for an “attempted terrorist murder and participation in the activities of a terrorist group”, according to Belgian public broadcaster RTBF.

“Certain elements indicate that the suspects intended to carry out a jihadist-inspired terrorist attack against political figures,” Fransen told reporters.

“There are also indications that the suspects aimed to construct a drone to which a payload could be attached,” she added.

Fransen did not name their intended targets, but social media posts from senior figures in De Wever’s government indicate that he was on the list.

“The news of a planned attack targeting Prime Minister Bart De Wever is deeply shocking,” wrote Deputy Prime Minister Maxime Prevot in a post on X.

“I express my full support to the Prime Minister, his wife, and his family, as well as my gratitude to the security and justice services whose swift action prevented the worst.”

Defence Minister Theo Francken shared a similar message on X.

“Prime Minister, Bart, all our support for you and your family. Thanks to the security services. Never surrender,” he said.

De Wever did not immediately comment on the case.

Belgium’s Gazet van Antwerpen newspaper said explosives were found by police in an Antwerp building a few hundred metres from De Wever’s residence.

Evidence included an improvised explosive device still under construction, a bag of steel balls, and a 3D printer, the newspaper said. Police believe the group were trying to build a drone capable of carrying an explosive payload.

Authorities did not release the names of the suspects but said they had been born in 2001, 2002, and 2007.

One of the suspects has been released, according to Fransen, and two are due to appear before an investigating judge on Friday.

Gazet van Antwerpen said De Wever has been the subject of previous threats. Earlier this year, a Belgian court convicted five people of making preparations to carry out an attack against him.

Los Angeles firefighters were hampered by a lack of resources for red flag weather conditions in their initial response to the Palisades fire, an internal after-action review report found.

The long-awaited 70-page report, produced by the Los Angeles Fire Department, was released late Wednesday afternoon on the heels of an announcement by federal prosecutors that they had arrested and charged a man with intentionally setting a fire on Jan. 1 that later reignited and became the Palisades fire.

Federal investigators determined that the Jan. 7 fire was a so-called holdover from the Jan. 1 fire, continuing to smolder and burn underground after firefighters thought they had extinguished it. The investigators said that heavy winds six days later caused the underground fire to surface and spread above ground in what became one of the costliest and most destructive disasters in city history.

In its after-action report, the Fire Department listed almost 100 challenges that firefighters faced during the Palisades fire, including an inability to secure the origin of the fire, an ineffective process for recalling firefighters who were off-duty to come back into work, and fire chiefs with little to no experience handling such a major incident. During the initial attack, the report said, most firefighters worked for more than 36 hours without rest.

The report cited a delay in communicating evacuation orders, which resulted in spontaneous evacuations without structured traffic control, causing people to block routes to the fire, the report said. The initial staging area, which was in the path of the evacuation route and the fire, was consumed by flames within 30 minutes, the report said.

The Palisades fire, which started at 10:30 a.m. Jan. 7, was one of the costliest and most destructive disasters in city history, leveling thousands of homes and killing 12 people.

A Times investigation found that LAFD officials did not pre-deploy any engines to the Palisades ahead of the fire, despite warnings about extreme weather. In preparing for the winds, the department staffed up only five of more than 40 engines available to supplement the regular firefighting force.

Those engines could have been pre-positioned in the Palisades and elsewhere, as had been done in the past during similar weather.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

The attack by the paramilitary on the hospital wounded 17 others, and is the second such attack in 24 hours.

At least 12 people have been killed and 17 were wounded when the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) shelled a hospital in Sudan’s North Darfur state, medical sources said.

A female doctor and a nursing staff member were among the injured in the attack on the el-Fasher Hospital, the Sudan Doctors Network said in a statement on Wednesday.

The medical group said the RSF “directly bombed” the facility. It alleged the attack was a “full-fledged war crime” and showed “a complete disregard for the lives of civilians and international laws that protect health facilities and their workers”.

The group held the RSF “fully responsible” for the attack and appealed to the international community and the United Nations Security Council to take immediate action to stop attacks on health facilities and civilian homes and to protect the devastated health system in the besieged city.

The hospital is one of the last functioning health facilities in the city, with most repeatedly bombed and forced to shut.

Two medical sources confirmed Wednesday’s attack, which was the second on the hospital within 24 hours, after eight people were killed in an attack on a maternity ward on Tuesday.

The RSF is pressing a fierce assault on el-Fasher in an attempt to wrest control of the city away from its rivals, the regular Sudanese army.

Since April 2023, the war between the two forces has killed tens of thousands, displaced some 15 million and pushed nearly 25 million people into acute hunger, according to UN figures, triggering what has widely been described as the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.

Some activists say el-Fasher, the last state capital in the vast western Darfur region to elude the paramilitary’s grasp, has become “an open-air morgue” for starved civilians.

The RSF has imposed a blockade on el-Fasher since May 10, 2024, despite international warnings about the dangers to the city, a hub for humanitarian operations in the five Darfur states.

Nearly 80 percent of households in need of medical care in el-Fasher are unable to access it, according to the UN.

Exhausted medical teams are already scrambling to treat the injured amid daily attacks on the city.

Nearly 18 months into the RSF’s siege, the city – home to 400,000 trapped civilians – has run out of nearly everything. The animal feed families have survived on for months has grown scarce and now costs hundreds of dollars a sack.

The majority of the city’s soup kitchens have also been forced shut for lack of food, according to local resistance committees, volunteer groups that coordinate aid.

More than one million people have fled el-Fasher since the start of Sudan’s civil war, with the exodus dramatically escalating as the RSF has increased attacks following its loss of control of the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, earlier this year.

Oct. 8 (UPI) — The motorcade of President Daniel Noboa Azin came under protester attack Tuesday in central Ecuador, according to officials who are vowing to hold those responsible to account. Protesters, meanwhile, are accusing the president of inciting the violence.

Video of the incident posted to the official X account of the office of the president shows the caravan driving through a road littered with concrete rubble and lined by hundreds of masked protesters holding Ecuadorian flags and throwing rocks at the vehicles.

“No one can come and take by force the capital that belongs to all Ecuadorians,” Noboa said in a statement following the incident.

“Those who choose violence will be met by the law. Those who act like criminals will be treated as criminals.”

The incident occurred Tuesday morning in Canar Province where Noboa’s office said he was to announce development projects.

His office said the caravan had been “the target of violent attacks.”

“These cowardly acts will not halt his commitment to building a safer, stronger and more united Ecuador.”

The incident comes amid tensions between the presidency and Ecuador’s Indigenous community following the government’s discontinuation of a diesel fuel subsidy.

In response to the attack, the Governing Council of the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador accused the president and his administration of antagonizing the protesters by specifically driving through what it called “a zone of resistance.”

“This incident, far from being an accident, constitutes a provocation by the national government,” it said in a statement, accusing it of using such incidents to justify its repression of protests.

“We reiterate that our mobilizations are legitimate, born from state neglect and structural exclusion. The Indigenous movement is not terrorist; it is a historic movement of struggle for life, dignity and the rights of peoples.”

There have been roadblocks and demonstrations by Indigenous and student organizations since last month when on Sept. 13 the price of a gallon of diesel fuel shot up by a dollar when the subsidies were cancel via executive decree to save the government more than $1.1 billion a year.

A government official in Ecuador has accused protesters of attempting to attack President Daniel Noboa, alleging that a group of approximately 500 people surrounded his vehicle and threw rocks.

The attack, which unfolded in the south-central province of Canar, took place as Noboa arrived in the canton of El Tambo for an event about water treatment and sewage.

Environment and Energy Minister Ines Manzano said Noboa’s car showed “signs of bullet damage”. In a statement to the press, she explained that she filed a report alleging an assassination attempt had taken place.

“Shooting at the president’s car, throwing stones, damaging state property — that’s just criminal,” Manzano said. “We will not allow this.”

The president’s office also issued a statement after the attack on Tuesday, pledging to pursue accountability against those involved.

“Obeying orders to radicalise, they attacked a presidential motorcade carrying civilians. They attempted to forcibly prevent the delivery of a project intended to improve the lives of a community,” the statement, published on social media, said.

“All those arrested will be prosecuted for terrorism and attempted murder,” it added.

Five people, according to Manzano, have been detained following the incident. Noboa was not injured.

Video published by the president’s office online shows Noboa’s motorcade navigating a roadway lined with protesters, some of whom picked up rocks and threw them at the vehicles, causing fractures to form on the glass.

A separate image showed a silver SUV with a shattered passenger window and a shattered windscreen. It is not clear from the images whether a bullet had been fired.

Noboa, Ecuador’s youngest-ever president, was re-elected in April after a heated run-off election against left-wing rival Luisa Gonzalez.

May marked the start of his first full term in office. Previously, Noboa, a conservative candidate who had only served a single term in the National Assembly, had been elected to serve the remainder of Guillermo Lasso’s term — a period of around 18 months — after the former president dissolved his government.

Combatting crime has been a centrepiece of Noboa’s pitch for the presidency. Ecuador, formerly considered an “island of peace” in South America, has seen a spike in homicide rates as criminal organisations seek to expand their drug trafficking routes through the country.

Ecuador’s economy has also struggled to recover following the COVID-19 pandemic.

But Noboa has faced multiple protests since taking office.

In recent weeks, for example, he has faced outcry over his decision to end a fuel subsidy that critics say helps lower-income families.

Noboa’s government, however, has argued that the subsidy drove up government costs without reaching those who need it. In a presidential statement on September 12, officials accused the subsidy of being “diverted to smuggling, illegal mining and undue benefits”.

The statement also said that the subsidies represented $1.1bn that could instead be used to compensate small farmers and transportation workers directly.

But the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE), the country’s most powerful Indigenous advocacy organisation, launched a strike in response to the news of the subsidy’s end.

It called upon its supporters to lead protests and block roadways as a way of expressing their outrage.

Nevertheless, on Tuesday, the group denied that there had been an organised attack on Noboa’s motorcade. Instead, CONAIE argued that government violence had been “orchestrated” against the people who had gathered to protest Noboa.

“We denounce that at least five comrades have been arbitrarily detained,” CONAIE posted on X. “Among the attacked are elderly women.”

It noted that Tuesday marked the 16th day of protest. “The people are not the enemy,” it added.

CONAIE had largely backed Noboa’s rival Gonzalez in the April election, though some of its affiliate groups splintered in favour of Noboa.

This is not the first time that Noboa’s government has claimed the president was the target of an assassination attempt.

In April, shortly after the run-off vote, it issued a “maximum alert” claiming that assassins had entered the country from Mexico to destabilise his administration.

At the time, the administration blamed “sore losers” from the election for fomenting the alleged plot.

Police in the United Kingdom are investigating a suspected arson attack on a mosque in southern England as a “hate crime” as a spate of violent crime against religious sites is reported.

Officers were called to the site of an arson attack on Phyllis Avenue in Peacehaven, East Sussex, just before 10pm (22:00 GMT) on Saturday, local police said.

The fire damaged the front entrance of the mosque and a car, they said, adding that no one was injured. Images and footage shared online show a burned-out car at the entrance of the mosque.

Sussex Police also shared images of two masked men dressed in dark clothing, and appealed for help from the public to identify them.

According to a report on CNN, which quoted a volunteer mosque manager, two people were inside the building when two people in balaclavas tried to force the mosque door open and poured petrol onto the steps, setting the building alight.

A spokesperson for the mosque said in a statement that the community was “deeply saddened” by the “shocking” attack. “While the incident has caused damage to our building and vehicles, we are profoundly grateful that no-one was injured.”

“This hateful act does not represent our community or our town. Peacehaven has always been a place of kindness, respect, and mutual support, and we will continue to embody those values,” the statement continued.

“We ask everyone to reject division and respond to hate with unity and compassion,” it added.

Detective Superintendent Karrie Bohanna said the attack had caused concerns within the Muslim community. “There is already an increased police presence at the scene, and there are also additional patrols taking place to provide reassurance at other places of worship across the county,” Bohanna said.

“Sussex Police takes a zero-tolerance approach to hate crime, and there is no place for hate across the county.”

Possible act of ‘terrorism’

Mothin Ali, deputy leader of the Green Party, said the police must establish the motives of the attack and whether it constitutes “an act of terrorism”.

“People were inside the mosque when it was firebombed and people in this community will be feeling frightened and targeted for their faith,” Ali said.

Chris Ward, the Labour MP for Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven, said he was “appalled” by the “disgusting” attack.

“That there were no injuries is purely by chance,” he said. “This violence and hatred has no place in our peaceful, tolerant local community. We will root it out, and we stand in solidarity with all affected.”

The attack comes after a ramming and stabbing at a synagogue in northern Manchester on Thursday. It killed two people and seriously injured three.

The Muslim Council of Britain condemned Saturday’s attack, saying it was “profoundly shocked and alarmed by the Islamophobic arson attack” and urged authorities to “provide robust protection for all places of worship”.

The mosque attack “follows a disturbing pattern of violence and intimidation”, it added. “Just last week, an Imam was stabbed in Hounslow, while mosques across the country have faced bomb threats and coordinated hate campaigns,” the council added in its statement.

Separately, the East London Mosque said on X that “our communities must remain united – Muslims, Jews, Christians, people of all faiths and none – in standing together against extremism, intolerance and violence.”

The Board of Deputies of British Jews also condemned the mosque attack, saying on X that “every faith community has the right to worship free from fear. Our country is better than this.”

The attacks on religious sites come as the atmosphere in the UK remains tense after months of protests against asylum seekers and a social media campaign called #OperationRaisetheColours.

In recent weeks, those heeding the call have pinned the flag of England bearing St George’s Cross and Union Jacks to motorway bridges, lampposts, roundabouts and some shops across the UK. Red crosses have been spray-painted on the white stripes of zebra crossings.

While some supporters frame the project as patriotic, it has been tied to racist incidents including the appearance of racist graffiti.

A TEENAGE girl, 17, was reportedly raped by a stranger in broad daylight as cops launch a manhunt.

The alleged attack unfolded in the village of Hassocks, in West Sussex, between 6pm and 7.30pm on Thursday.

The victim claimed to be approached in Keymer Road, near the junctions with Parklands Road and Grand Avenue.

Detective Inspector Debbie Birch, leading the investigation, said: “We are supporting the victim as we actively carry out detailed enquiries, which include CCTV and house to house enquiries.”

DI Birch added: “We have increased our police presence in the village while we investigate, and we are carrying out additional high visibility patrols for reassurance.

“Anyone who has any concerns is urged to stop and talk to officers.

“If you were in the area and noticed anything suspicious or have information that may assist us, we ask you to contact police or on 101, and quote Operation Insight.

“We will provide updates about the investigation when possible.”

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Oct. 5 (UPI) — Russia launched some 50 missiles and 500 drones in an overnight attack in Ukraine, leaving five people dead, the President Volodymyr Zelensky, said.

The assault was aimed at the country’s infrastructure, leaving thousands without power, the BBC reported.

The strikes on Liviv left four members of a family dead, and the attack in Zaporizhzhia killed one person.

The head of that region, Maksym Kozytskyi, said the area has not seen such a blitz since the Russian invasion began in 2022.

Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Kherson, Odesa and Kirovohrad were also targeted.

“Today, the Russians once again targeted our infrastructure — everything that ensures normal life for our people. We need more protection and faster implementation of all defense agreements, especially on air defense, to deprive this aerial terror of any meaning,” Zelensky said in a statement, per the New York Times.

PRO-PALESTINE marches have gone ahead today with protesters gathering in London and Manchester.

The demonstrations are taking place despite calls from Sir Keir Starmer and police to cancel the events following the terror attack on a synagogue in Manchester on Thursday.

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Dozens of police officers have been seen lined up next to Nelson’s Column in central London ahead of the arrival of hundreds of protesters supporting banned group Palestine Action.

Just after 1pm, protesters from the group Defend our Juries arrived in Trafalgar Square began clapping before sitting down.

They chanted “free, free Palestine” and some began writing “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action”, while others held pre-written signs.

A woman in blue scrubs stood in the crowds with a sign reading “nurse against genocide”.

Several campaigners from the Stop the War coalition are already in Trafalgar Square, holding placards and Palestine flags.

The Metropolitan Police said it had arrested six people over the banner draped on Westminster Bridge in support of banned group Palestine Action.

The force said: “Officers were quickly on scene, the banner had been removed and the six people involved have been arrested for supporting a proscribed organisation.”

Meanwhile, pro-Palestinian supporters grew to around 100 before speeches began outside Manchester Cathedral.

Scotland Yard chief Sir Mark Rowley had asked for protests to be postponed due to the drain on resources while extra officers are stationed at synagogues.

He also warned the rallies “will likely create further tensions and some might say lacks sensitivity” in the wake of the attack.

It comes after pro-Palestine protesters took to the streets just hours after Adrian Daulby, 53, and Melvin Cravitz, 66, were murdered by Jihad Al-Shamie.

The pair were brutally killed by the 35-year-old jihadist during Yom Kippur –  the holiest day in the Jewish calendar.

Speaking at yesterday’s Manchester synagogue vigil, locals turned on ministers, yelling “you have blood on your hands”.

Furious mourners slammed the Government for not doing enough to stop the “hate marches”, which are still set to go ahead.

No figure has been given for the number of casualties in Moscow’s latest attack on Ukraine’s railway infrastructure.

A Russian strike has hit a passenger train in Ukraine’s northern Sumy region, resulting in casualties among the passengers, as Moscow continues its near-daily targeting of Ukraine’s railway infrastructure.

Regional governor Oleh Hryhorov said on Saturday that the Russian attack had targeted a railway station in the Shostka community, and that a train heading to Kyiv had been hit.

In a message on Telegram, the acting mayor of Sumy Artem Kobzar said: “There are injured passengers. Rescuers, medics, and all emergency services are working at the scene.”

No figure was given for the number of casualties, but Hryhorov posted a picture of a burning passenger carriage at the scene.

The attack on the train comes a day after Russia launched its biggest overnight air attacks on several regions of Ukraine, particularly emergency infrastructure for power grids and gas sites, raising concerns about the country’s energy supplies as winter looms again for the war’s fourth year.

A statement by the country’s Ministry of Energy said on Telegram that the attack comprised missiles and drones, and that rescuers and energy workers were working to eliminate the consequences of the attacks and stabilise the situation as soon as possible.

Moscow has stepped up its air attack campaign on Ukraine’s railway infrastructure, hitting it almost every day over the past two months.

AT LEAST 30 people have been injured in a Russian drone strike on a Ukrainian passenger train, which left the carriage burning and ripped apart.

Emergency services were rushed to Shotska, in Ukraine’s Sumy region, after the “savage” attack.

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In a post on X, he said: “A savage Russian drone strike on the railway station in Shostka, Sumy region.

“All emergency services are already on the scene and have begun helping people.

“All information about the injured is being established. So far, we know of at least 30 victims.

“Preliminary reports indicate that both Ukrzaliznytsia staff and passengers were at the site of the strike.

“The Russians could not have been unaware that they were striking civilians. And this is terror the world must not ignore.

“Every day Russia takes people’s lives. And only strength can make them stop.

“We’ve heard resolute statements from Europe and America – and it’s high time to turn them all into reality, together with everyone who refuses to accept murder and terror as normal.

“Lip service is not enough now. Strong action is needed.”

UK police are urging organisers to cancel a pro-Palestine protest set to take place in London this weekend after Thursday’s deadly synagogue attack. Activists say the attack should not be conflated with protests over Israel’s genocidal war.

Manchester United and Manchester City will pay tribute to the victims of the Manchester synagogue attack before their Premier League fixtures this weekend.

But tributes will not be routinely held across the Premier League or English Football League over Thursday’s incident in which two people died and three others were injured.

United players will wear black armbands and hold a minute’s silence before their match against Sunderland at Old Trafford on Saturday, while the women’s team will do the same at their Women’s Super League match against Chelsea on Friday night.

Speaking at his news conference on Friday, United men’s manager Ruben Amorim said: “It is a crazy world we are living in at the moment, lot of big things happened, sympathy to victims, we will pay tribute tomorrow.”

United’s under-18 and under-21 sides will also wear black armbands in their games.

City will also wear black armbands when they travel to Brentford on Sunday and have agreed with the Bees to hold a moment’s silence before kick-off.

A commemoration was already planned by Brentford in memory of their head of academy goalkeeping Christopher Ramsey, who died on Wednesday of bowel cancer.

Brentford have agreed to change the tribute from a minute’s applause to silence given the gravity of Thursday’s attack.

Manchester City women will also pay their respects before their WSL match against Arsenal on Saturday.

It is understood both the Premier League and EFL will support any club wishing to pay tribute.

Residents in UK’s Crumpsall say they are shocked after a car and knife attack near synagogue kills two people.

Manchester, England – As people gathered near a synagogue in Manchester, hours after an attack there killed two people, many struggled to make sense of the assault. Attacks don’t happen in places like this, locals say, not least on Yom Kippur.

About 9.30am (08:30 GMT) on Thursday, a man drove his car into people near the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Crumpsall in the north of Manchester before emerging to attack others with a knife.

The synagogue’s security staff and members of the public prevented him from entering the building before police arrived and fatally shot the assailant, who appeared to be wearing an “explosive device”, police said. Four injured people were admitted to hospital in serious condition.

Two people have been arrested since the attack, said the Metropolitan Police’s head of counterterrorism policing, Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor. The identity and potential motives of the attacker have not been disclosed.

Standing with some of his family on the corner of a nearby road with a police helicopter hovering overhead, 23-year-old Zaki said he still can’t believe what happened.

“I heard the shots this morning,” he told Al Jazeera. “It didn’t seem believable. I thought it was fireworks.”

Zaki echoed the comments of many who gathered around the synagogue. These things don’t happen here, onlookers said. Crumpsall has long been a multicultural area. “Everyone in our community gets on well,” Zaki said. “Our neighbours are Jewish.”

Another resident, 41-year-old Sam Martin, also described struggling to understand the attack.

“There’s everyone here,” he told Al Jazeera, “Muslims, Jews, everyone. I’ve known nothing but love and kindness from our Jewish community. I’m just shocked this could happen.”

According to many people in the neighbourhood, even Israel’s war on Gaza hasn’t caused any great division within the community. However, many expressed concerns that far-right groups – their confidence fuelled after an August campaign to hang English flags across the country and a mass rally in London a month later – would seek to take advantage of the attack to further unrest.

Far-right activist Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, who uses the pseudonym Tommy Robinson, quickly seized upon the attack, assigning blame to groups from the Board of Deputies of British Jews to the United Kingdom’s ruling Labour Party for the assault despite the identity and potential motives of the attacker remaining unclear.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar criticised British authorities, accusing them of failing to curb anti-Semitism.

“Blatant and rampant antisemitic and anti-Israeli incitement, as well as calls of support for terror, have recently become a widespread phenomenon in the streets of London, in cities across Britain, and on its campuses,” he wrote on X.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the attacker was a “vile” person who was motivated to attack Jews “because they are Jews.”

I am appalled by the murderous attack near the Heaton Park Synagogue in Manchester on the morning of the holiest day for the Jewish people: Yom Kippur.
My deepest condolences go to the families who have lost their loved ones,and I wish a swift and full recovery to the injured.…

— Gideon Sa’ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) October 2, 2025

One of the young men gathered near the police cordon, 23-year-old Akiva, who asked neither to be recorded or have notes taken during his interview out of respect for the holiday, was sure the English far right would seize upon the attack. He said the attack has shaken Jewish residents and would likely sow divisions in the otherwise quiet and well integrated community.

Akiva had come to the synagogue to check on his brother, who normally took a route past the synagogue on his way to worship. He said his mother collapsed when she first heard of the attack so close to their home in Manchester.

Other members of the district’s Jewish community gathered nearby spoke of feeling targeted for their identity, of having been attacked on their holiest day of the year.

PRO-Palestinians have hit the streets of Manchester to protest against Greta Thunberg’s flotilla detention.

It comes just hours after the vile terror attack on Manchester‘s Heaton Park synagogue, which unfolded on the holiest day of the Jewish calendar.

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Protesters were marching at Manchester Piccadilly station today in solidarity with the members of Global Sumud Flotilla – a fleet of 40 ships carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza.

The Israeli navy intercepted several vessels at sea beginning Wednesday, after warning activists against entering waters it says fall under its blockade.

As the nation mourned the sick terror attack against the Jewish community – which killed two people – protesters marched through the streets of Manchester.

Hundreds of them gathered outside the Manchester Piccadilly Station banging drums and chanting slogans against the Israeli authorities. 

They were seen waving Palestine flags and holding placards that read “Freedom for Palestine” and “Stop starving Gaza”.

Organisers of the protest said they “condemned in the strongest possible terms” the attack in Heaton Park – and called for a minute’s silence in respect for the victims.

Another protest took place in Parliament Square as activists gathered to demonstrate against Israeli authorities.

The protest sparked fury, including from Conservative MP Susan Hall, who described it as “disgraceful, disrespectful, despicable behaviour”.

The demonstrations come in the wake of today’s vile Manchester attack.

An assailant drove a car into people outside a synagogue and then began stabbing them, killing two and seriously wounding four in what police called a terrorist attack on the holiest day of the Jewish year.

Officers shot and killed the suspect outside Manchester, police said.

Authorities said he was wearing a vest that made it appear as if he had explosives. Police later said he did not have a bomb.

The Metropolitan Police force in London, which leads the nation’s counter-terrorism policing operations, declared the rampage a terrorist attack.

Israel slammed the UK government for not doing enough and warned that antisemitism is on the rise after the vile synagogue attack.

Tel Aviv said British authorities “failed” to tackle the “toxic wave of antisemitism” which led to the terror rampage.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said: “I am appalled by the murderous attack near the Heaton Park Synagogue in Manchester on the morning of the holiest day for the Jewish people: Yom Kippur.

“The truth must be told: blatant and rampant antisemitic and anti-Israeli incitement, as well as calls of support for terror, have recently become a widespread phenomenon in the streets of London, in cities across Britain, and on its campuses.

“The authorities in Britain have failed to take the necessary action to curb this toxic wave of antisemitism and have effectively allowed it to persist.”

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country “grieves with the Jewish community in the UK” after this morning‘s “barbaric terror attack” in Manchester.

“Our hearts are with the families of the murdered, and we pray for the swift recovery of the wounded,” he said on X.

“As I warned at the UN: weakness in the face of terrorism only brings more terrorism. Only strength and unity can defeat it.”

Sir Keir – who cut short his trip to Denmark and rushed back to chair a Cobra meeting – condemned antisemitism and said that Britain “must defeat it once again”.

Speaking from Downing Street, the PM blasted the “terrorist attack that attacked Jews because they are Jews”, committed by “a vile individual”.

Sir Keir said: “Earlier today, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day for the Jewish community, a vile individual committed a terrorist attack that attacked Jews because they are Jews, and attacked Britain because of our values.

“So many Jewish families first came to this country as a place of refuge, fleeing the greatest evil ever inflicted on a people, and Britain welcomed them.

“Communities like the one attacked in Manchester provided safety, but also the security that comes from a promise that this is a country that stands up to hatred and that we don’t just provide refuge, we provide a home.”

Starmer said the Jewish community in Britain will see a “more visible police presence” as he promised to do “everything in my power to guarantee you the security that you deserve”.

Protests spread in Europe

Thousands of people marched through the streets of Barcelona today to denounce Israel’s interception of a pro-Palestinian aid flotilla bound for Gaza.

Columns of demonstrators, many waving Palestinian flags, converged on the central Plaza de les Drassanes from multiple parts of Spain‘s second-largest city.

Protesters chanted slogans including “Gaza, you are not alone,” “Boycott Israel,” and “Freedom for Palestine.”

Other protests were reported in other Spanish cities tonight, including Madrid, Valencia, and Bilbao.

Thousands also gathered in Italy on Thursday in support of the Gaza aid flotilla ahead of a strike in solidarity with activists.

As dusk fell in Rome, several thousand protesters gathered near the Colosseum in solidarity with the flotilla and against Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni‘s support of Israel — a day after a similar protest on Wednesday evening.

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Footage showed Israeli forces boarding the boats and detaining activists, including Greta Thunberg, as they headed for war-ravaged Gaza.

In video footage, Greta Thunberg can be seen being detained, as well as onboard vision of the flotilla at the time of the interception.

In a statement posted to the social media platform X, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said: “several vessels of the Hamas-Sumud flotilla have been safely stopped and their passengers are being transferred to an Israeli port”.

“Greta and her friends are safe and healthy”.

In a second post, the ministry shared two images of the flotilla activists, saying: “Hamas-Sumud passengers on their yachts are making their way safely and peacefully to Israel, where their deportation procedures to Europe will begin”.

“The passengers are safe and in good health,” the post ended.

Activists can be seen with life jackets on, holding their hands up in the surrender position.

Yesterday, members of the Global Sumud Flotilla reported army personnel jumped onboard and “illegally intercepted” their journey just hours after they were circled by a warship.

The humanitarian convoy was attempting to get essential aid, including baby formula and medication, to Gaza.

The Global Sumud Flotilla is made up of more than 40 civilian boats carrying an estimated 500 parliamentarians, lawyers and activists, including Thunberg.

On Wednesday, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, said the activists aboard the flotilla will be deported once the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur ends on Thursday.

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Oct. 2 (UPI) — Police in Manchester have labeled a deadly attack on a synagogue during Yom Kippur services a terrorist incident. Two people were killed.

The attack at Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue also injured three people who were in serious condition, the Greater Manchester Police said in a statement.

Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, head of counter-terrorism policing, said police know the attacker’s identity. The attacker was shot dead by police, but there have been two other arrests, he said.

Manchester police also have said that the device the man was wearing, believed to be an explosive device, was not viable.

Members of a bomb disposal unit were on the scene to investigate, and police advised the public to stay away from the area. They also held members of the congregation inside the synagogue temporarily while making the area safe and released them later.

A GMP spokesperson said police were in contact with all synagogues in the greater Manchester area “to provide reassurance.”

“We know today’s horrifying attack, on the Jewish community’s holiest day, will have caused significant shock and fear throughout all of our communities,” the spokesperson said.

“We are grateful to the member of the public whose quick response to what they witnessed allowed our swift action, and as a result, the offender was prevented from entering the synagogue.”

The Israeli Embassy in London condemned the attack, calling it “abhorrent and deeply distressing” in a statement on X.

“The safety and security of Jewish communities in the United Kingdom must be guaranteed,” the statement added.

Britain’s King Charles III offered his thoughts and prayers in the wake of the attack and thanked the work of emergency officials.

“My wife and I have been deeply shocked and saddened to learn of the horrific attack in Manchester, especially on such a significant day for the Jewish community,” he said.

Jewish communities in Britain were on heightened alert Thursday, with London’s Metropolitan Police increasing patrols new Jewish cultural sites, an unnamed source told The Guardian.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said additional police were being deployed to synagogues throughout the country.

“We will do everything we can to keep our Jewish community safe,” he said.

Starmer planned to fly back to Britain early from a summit he was leading in Denmark, the BBC reported.

WASHINGTON — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used a White House visit on Monday to extend a formal apology to his Qatari counterpart for a recent military strike targeting Hamas officials in the Gulf emirate that infuriated Arab leaders and triggered rare criticism by the U.S. of Israel.

Meanwhile, the White House has released a Trump plan for ending the Israel-Hamas war and Gaza governance. There’s no immediate word on whether Israel or Hamas has accepted the deal presented by the U.S. administration.

Netanyahu made the call to Qatar’s prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, as he met with President Trump for critical talks aimed at ending the war in Gaza and developing a U.S. plan on postwar governance in the war-battered Palestinian territory, according to the White House.

“As a first step, Prime Minister Netanyahu expressed his deep regret that Israel’s missile strike against Hamas targets in Qatar unintentionally killed a Qatari serviceman,” the White House said in a statement. “He further expressed regret that, in targeting Hamas leadership during hostage negotiations, Israel violated Qatari sovereignty and affirmed that Israel will not conduct such an attack again in the future.”

The White House talks, and apology from Netanyahu, come at a tenuous moment. Israel is increasingly isolated, losing support from many countries that were long its steadfast allies. At home, Netanyahu’s governing coalition appears more fragile than ever. And the White House is showing signs of impatience.

The question now is whether Trump, who has offered steadfast backing to Netanyahu throughout the war, will change his tone and turn up the pressure on Israel to wind down the conflict.

As he welcomed Netanyahu to the White House, Trump responded affirmatively when asked by reporters whether he was confident a deal soon would be reached to end the fighting between Israel and Hamas.

“I am. I’m very confident,” Trump said.

Netanyahu’s apology for strike that angered U.S. ally

Israel struck the headquarters of Hamas’ political leadership in Qatar on Sept. 9 as the group’s top figures gathered to consider a U.S. proposal for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

The strike on the territory of a U.S. ally was a stunning escalation and risked upending talks aimed at winding down the war and freeing hostages. No senior Hamas officials were killed in the strike.

The attack on an energy-rich Gulf nation hosting thousands of American troops, which has served as a key mediator between Israel and Hamas throughout the war and even before, was described by Trump as out of step with Israeli and U.S. interests. And Trump sought to move quickly to assuage his Qatari allies.

Qatar, meanwhile, condemned the strike as a “flagrant violation of all international laws and norms” as smoke rose over its capital, Doha. Other key U.S. allies in the Gulf, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, promised their support to Qatar.

The White House said Al Thani welcomed Netanyahu’s “assurances” and emphasized “Qatar’s readiness to continue contributing meaningfully to regional security and stability.”

But even as the White House was spotlighting the apology, Israel’s far right national security minister newly defended the decision to carry out Israel’s attack.

Itamar Ben-Gvir, a key coalition partner of Netanyahu’s, in a posting on X called the operation “an important, just and ethical attack.”

“It is very good that it happened,” he added.

Geller, Mednick and Madhani write for the Associated Press.

Denmark has said that the drone incursions that shut down two major Nordic airports overnight constituted an “attack.” The incident comes soon after more than a dozen Russian drones entered Polish airspace, with some being shot down, and following a flight into Estonian airspace by Russian MiG-31 Foxhound interceptors. Amid a spike in tensions between Moscow and NATO, the Kremlin has denied it was behind last night’s Nordic drone incident.

The drones began to appear in the airspace over the airports in Copenhagen and Oslo, the two busiest in the Nordic region, late on Monday, local time. Both hubs were shut for hours last night, leaving tens of thousands of passengers stranded, and leading to flights being diverted, delayed, or cancelled.

According to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, at least “three big drones” were involved in the Copenhagen incident, while local police put the number at two or three. Reportedly, the drones in Denmark came from multiple directions, turning their lights on and off for several hours before disappearing.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen told the country’s broadcaster TV2 that the disruption at Copenhagen Airport was “the most serious attack on Danish critical infrastructure to date.” Frederiksen continued: “It says something about the times we live in and what we as a society must be prepared to deal with.” The prime minister said that she was “not ruling out any options in relation to who is behind this.” She added: “It is clear that this fits in with the developments we have seen recently with other drone attacks, airspace violations, and hacker attacks on European airports.”

Other Danish authorities are also speaking openly about the incident as an attack, a description also used by Anne Tønnes, director at Copenhagen Police.

TV2 has also reported that the Danish Armed Forces are involved in the investigation into the Copenhagen drones.

Danish authorities have not offered any more details on the incursion, including whether the drones were launched from the land or from the sea. However, Danish police chief superintendent Jens Jespersen told reporters that whoever was responsible is “what we would call a capable operator.” Jespersen continued: “It’s an actor who has the capabilities, the will, and the tools to show off in this way.”

Russian involvement hasn’t been ruled out by Danish authorities, Prime Minister Frederiksen told reporters today.

“I cannot rule out in any way that it is Russia. We have seen drones over Poland that should not have been there. We have seen activity in Romania. We have seen violations of Estonian airspace. We have seen hacker attacks on European airports over the weekend. Now there have been drones in Denmark, and it appears that there have been drones in Oslo and Norway as well. Therefore, I can only say that, in my view, this is a serious attack on critical Danish infrastructure.”

A bit of chaos tonight at multiple northern European airports as unidentified drones are spotted over Oslo and Copenhagen, forcing multiple airport closures and diversions.

Local police and security forces are attempting to hunt the drones down. pic.twitter.com/NkxvCn4oUo

— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) September 22, 2025

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has meanwhile stated his opinion that Russia was behind the Nordic drone incursions.

A statement on President Zelensky’s website said that he had spoken about the incident with International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director Kristalina Georgieva. The pair “discussed Russia’s violations of the airspace of NATO member states, including … in Copenhagen.” The statement continued: “If there is no resolute response from the allies — both states and institutions — to these provocations, Russia will continue its aggressive actions, testing the societies of European and NATO countries.”

European Union foreign policy spokesperson Anitta Hipper agreed with the assessment that the Nordic drone incursions conformed with a pattern of nefarious Russian activity.

“We have seen the incident, and we’re in full solidarity with Denmark, but also with Norway,” Hipper said. “We commend them already for the swift action, so we still need to wait for the final outcome. But what we have seen throughout the last weeks points to Russia in terms of their reckless actions in at least three member states — first Poland, then Romania, and most recently, Estonia. What we have seen in terms of Russia is that they have not ‘accidentally’ violated the airspaces of EU member states, but this was an intentional violation of the European airspace, and here we see a clear pattern. Russia is testing the European borders, also probing our resolve and undermining our security.”

Russia has denied involvement in the Copenhagen drone incident. “We hear unfounded accusations from there every time,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. “Perhaps a party that takes a serious, responsible position shouldn’t make such unfounded accusations time and again,” Peskov added.

Whoever might have been behind it, the EU is clearly taking the incident seriously.

This Friday, Denmark will join other EU members to discuss a “drone wall.” Other countries involved are Bulgaria, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Romania.

Meanwhile, today saw a NATO meeting to discuss the Russian incursion into Estonian airspace last Friday, which involved three Russian MiG-31s. NATO jets were scrambled to intercept them under the alliance’s new Operation Eastern Sentry, created to protect Eastern Europe.

The meeting today ended with NATO declaring that Russia’s actions over Estonia were “escalatory, risk miscalculation [and] endanger lives.” The “dangerous” violation last week was “part of a wider pattern of increasingly irresponsible Russian behavior,” the alliance added.

After that meeting, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said that Russia has violated Norwegian airspace three times this year.

“The incidents in Norway are smaller in scope than the violations against Estonia, Poland, and Romania, in terms of both location and duration. They are, nevertheless, incidents that we view very seriously,” Støre said.

Two of the incidents Støre mentioned occurred over the sea northeast of Vardø in April and August, while the third took place over an uninhabited area along the land border in East Finnmark in July. The border violations involved Russian Su-24 Fencer and Su-33 Flanker combat jets and an L-410 Turbolet transport aircraft. Each violation lasted between one and four minutes. Støre noted that Norway could not determine if they were deliberate or “due to navigation errors.” “Regardless of the reason, this is not acceptable, and we have made that clear to the Russian authorities,” Støre said.

In a fresh press-release, the Norwegian government says that Russian aircraft have violated Norwegian airspace three times this year.

Even during the Cold War, Soviet airspace violations were rare, and usually involved aircraft coming from Cuba, running low on fuel. pic.twitter.com/81VUNSOgAv

— Thord Are Iversen (@The_Lookout_N) September 23, 2025

The NATO meeting today was the second time in two weeks that the North Atlantic Council had met under Article 4. Article 4 states that “the Parties [to the alliance] will consult together whenever, in the opinion of any of them, the territorial integrity, political independence or security of any of the Parties is threatened.”

The first meeting was called after the large-scale violation of Polish airspace by Russian drones.

The alliance today stressed that it would “reinforce our capabilities and strengthen our deterrence and defense posture, including through effective air defense. Russia should be in no doubt: NATO and allies will employ, in accordance with international law, all necessary military and non-military tools to defend ourselves, and deter all threats from all directions. We will continue to respond in the manner, timing, and domain of our choosing.”

When asked today about the Nordic drone incursions, NATO Secretary General Rutte said it was too early to talk about what had caused the disruption.

Meanwhile, the language used by NATO officials has become more forceful since the latest spate of airspace incursions kicked off.

Officials are now talking more openly about the prospect of shooting down Russian aircraft, having already used fighter jets to bring down Russian drones over Poland.

Referring to the Russian incursion into Estonia last Friday, Rutte said it was assessed that the MiG-31s posed “no immediate threat,” and so they were escorted out of Estonian airspace without a stronger reaction.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Russia’s violation of NATO’s airspace:

We are a defensive alliance, yes, but we are not naïve. So we see what is happening and whether it is intentional or not.

If it is not intentional, then it is blatantly incompetent. And of course, even… pic.twitter.com/qpksIYzi4k

— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) September 23, 2025

In the future, however, Rutte said that NATO “will act decisively and quickly” if the need arises. “[The] Russians know … that if necessary, we will not hesitate,” he added.

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