New pictures of Jihad Al-Shamie, the Manchester synagogue attacker, have been released. A woman who took part in an Islamic marriage to Al-Shamie has opened up for the first time with the media on how she met the attacker, who was shot dead by police on Thursday outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue.
The woman, who has asked not to be named, also shared details about their relationship – and how she discovered after her own marriage with Al-Shamie that he already had a wife and a child in Manchester. In her bombshell interview, published by our sister news outlet, the Manchester Evening News, the woman alleged Al-Shamie showed abusive and controlling behaviour towards her.
The man, she claimed, abused her both mentally and sexually, “constantly” lying to her to keep his secret safe. She said: “He was nice, then he was vile. Nice. Vile. It was his way or no way. He said that before we had a relationship, we needed to be married.”
The woman shared never-before-seen pictures of the synagogue attacker, as well as texts and audio messages.
Al-Shamie, a British citizen of Syrian descent, launched a deadly attack on the Manchester synagogue last week, which resulted in the death of two people.
The 35-year-old, who lived in Prestwich, Manchester, is understood to have entered the UK as a young child and was granted British citizenship in 2006, aged around 16.
Following the attack, his father Faraj Al-Shamie expressed “profound shock” in a statement. Speaking on behalf of his family, he said: “We fully distance ourselves from this attack and express our deep shock and sorrow over what has happened. Our hearts and thoughts are with the victims and their families, and we pray for their strength and comfort.
“We kindly request that all media outlets respect the family’s privacy during this very difficult time and refrain from using this tragic event in any context that does not reflect the truth. May God have mercy on the innocent victims, and we pray for the swift recovery of the injured.”
The two members of the Jewish Community who died as a result of the terror attack were 53-year-old Adrian Daulby and 66-year-old Melvin Cravitz, both from Crumpsall.
Their funeral services were held this week, with hundreds of people paying tributes to the innocent victims.