A former Tory cabinet minister has revealed that his father-in-law was present at the Manchester synagogue attack as he called on the public to “stand unshaken against hate”.
Sir Grant Shapps, who is Jewish, said it was “chilling” to hear his father-in-law’s “first-hand account” of the attack at Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation on Thursday, in which two men were killed.
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In a post on X, Sir Shapps, who has served in various Conservative cabinet posts, including home secretary and defence secretary, said: “Yesterday’s terrorist attack on Manchester’s synagogue was an assault on the Jewish community and our shared humanity; hearing my father-in-law’s chilling first-hand account brings home the horror, as we mourn the lost, pray for the injured, and stand unshaken against hate.”
Elaborating on the account, Sir Shapps told The Times newspaper that his father-in-law, Michael Goldstone, came “face-to-face” with al Shamie from inside the synagogue, where he is a member of the congregation.
He said: “He was face-to-face with the terrorist, holding the inside of the door, as he tried to break down the front doors.
“They locked the doors when the car crashed into the gate, which prevented more killings.”
The two men killed outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Thursday’s attack have been named by police as Adrian Daulby, 53, and Melvin Cravitz, 66.
