London, Feb 1 (IANS) A man was arrested after a woman was stabbed to death in northwest London, the Metropolitan Police said on Sunday.

The police were called on Saturday afternoon to reports of a stabbing incident. The victim, a 50-year-old woman, was found with stab wounds. Despite the efforts of emergency services, she was pronounced dead at the scene.

A 30-year-old man was arrested on Saturday evening on suspicion of murder. It is believed that the suspect and the victim were known to each other, Xinhua News Agency reported.

In October last year, at least two people were killed, and several others were injured in a mass stabbing attack that took place near a synagogue in Manchester City, the local police authorities reported.

Police said responding police officers shot dead a third person who was a “man believed to be the offender”, ABC News reported. The local authorities confirmed that at least three more people were injured. The incident took place outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Manchester, according to law enforcement.

According to police, injuries were caused by a vehicle and stab wounds. Police said that a member of the public told responding officers that he had seen a car being driven towards a crowd of people. Police said firearms officers responded to the call.

Terming it as a major incident, the police had given it a “PLATO” designation, a law enforcement shorthand implying that the incident was being treated as a potential marauding terrorist attack, the ABC News reported. The incident happened on Yom Kippur, regarded as the holiest day of the year in the Jewish calendar.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that he is “appalled” by the attack and stated that the incident happening on Yom Kippur “makes it all the more horrific.” He expressed sympathy with the loved ones of those affected and expressed gratitude to the emergency services and the first responders.

“I’m appalled by the attack at a synagogue in Crumpsall. The fact that this has taken place on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, makes it all the more horrific. My thoughts are with the loved ones of all those affected, and my thanks go to the emergency services and all the first responders,” Starmer had posted on X.

–IANS

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