Yoni Finlay, 38, was wounded by police gunfire while helping to block the doors of the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation as an attacker tried to force his way inside. He underwent a seven-hour surgery and was released earlier this week, Greater Manchester Police confirmed. Two other victims, including a synagogue security guard, remain hospitalized in stable condition.
In an interview with ITV’s Granada Reports, Finlay’s 15-year-old son, Uriel, described his father as “a complete hero” who had “saved so many lives” by holding the synagogue doors shut during the attack.
Uriel said he had been asleep at home when the incident began, but knew his father was at the synagogue. “I ran out the house, I didn’t think about anything else and it was complete chaos, there were loads of ambulances, armed police going inside the shul every five minutes,” he said. “When all the victims of the shul came out, I realized my dad wasn’t there.”