Suspect arrested after arson at Wuppertal synagogue before Yom Kippur
A 37‑year‑old man was detained; investigators say the fire on the synagogue steps caused minor damage and the case is led by the service for the protection of the constitutional order.
A synagogue in Wuppertal was set on fire on Friday, 18 September 2026, shortly before the Jewish day of atonement, Yom Kippur. Police say the blaze was started on the outer steps of the Bergisch synagogue in Wuppertal‑Barmen; the fire was extinguished quickly and caused only minor material damage.
Authorities arrested one suspect on Thursday: a 37‑year‑old man of Afghan nationality who was already known to police. According to the police, the suspect poured a flammable liquid onto the synagogue steps and then ignited it. The investigation is being handled by the service for the protection of the constitutional order, and investigators currently believe the perpetrator acted alone, a police spokesperson said on Friday morning.
News of the attack prompted alarm among Jewish leaders. "What deeply alarms me is the complete calm with which the perpetrator in Wuppertal carried out this attack in broad daylight," said Josef Schuster, president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany. He added: "Such behaviour testifies to the increased normalization of hatred against Jews, to which our society so far has not found an answer."
Calls for greater security ahead of Yom Kippur
Schuster pointed out that Yom Kippur, the most important Jewish holiday, begins on Sunday evening (20 September 2026) and said congregations would be full. "All synagogues will be full. Security services have an obligation to ensure the safety of religious services. We want and will continue to live our faith and will not allow anyone to stop us from doing so," he said.
The Conference of Orthodox Rabbis in Germany described the incident as further evidence of the precarious position of Jewish life in the country: "The subversive attack on the synagogue in Wuppertal shows how dangerous the situation is for Jewish life in Germany. Antisemitism does not start only with physical violence," the rabbis said. The statement was issued by Rabbis Avihai Appel (Frankfurt), Zolt Bala (Leipzig) and Yehuda Pushkin (Stuttgart).
Speakers noted a pattern in which religious festivals are chosen as targets to spread fear and marginalize Jewish presence. They pointed to earlier assaults — the Hanukkah attacks in Sydney in 2025, Yom Kippur attacks in Manchester in 2025, the 2019 Halle attack, and a previous arson at a Wuppertal synagogue in 2014 — as part of the same worrying trend.
Photo: press material from the event
