Detectives investigating an anti-Semitic assault in Prestwich have made a further arrest.

A 17-year-old boy from Prestwich today has been arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm and violent disorder after he walked into a local police station.

This comes after two 17-year-old boys were arrested this morning at addresses in Whitefield and Derbyshire also on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm and violent disorder.

All three remain in custody for questioning in relation to  the incident at Bowker Vale Metrolink stop on Saturday.

They have been taken into custody and will be interviewed by detectives later today.

Moshe Fuerst, aged 17, suffered a serious head injury after being attacked by the group of three offenders, and remains in a serious but stable condition in hospital. He had been to the cinema with three other Jewish friends before the attack, which happened at around 11.30pm.

Moshe suffered a fractured skull after being punched and kicked to the head and was taken to North Manchester General Hospital before being transferred to a specialist brain injury ward at Salford Royal Hospital, where he is making a steady recovery.

Two 18-year-old men were also taken to hospital for treatment to minor injuries, but have since been discharged.

Police are treating the assault as an anti-Semitic hate crime and are still appealing for potential witnesses to come forward to assist their enquiries.

Detective Inspector Liam Boden of GMP's North Manchester Division said: "We have had a team of officers working closely with our partners to recover and examine evidence since the offence took place, which has revealed a sustained and unprovoked attack on the victims who were waiting for a tram on the opposite platform.

“Detectives investigating this case will be interviewing two suspects later today, but we are still appealing for any witnesses to come forward.

“There are two distinct scenes, as we believe the victims were chased from the platform to Middleton Road and that is where the most serious assault took place.

“We would therefore like to ask anyone who may have been travelling along Middleton Road at around 11.25pm on Saturday, or anyone who believes they may have witnessed the attack, to come forward.

“Similarly, we believe the offenders then alighted the Metrolink towards Bury at around 11.35pm, travelling between Bowker Vale and Radcliffe.

“We know there were people on this tram and that they would have noticed these offenders travelling between carriages, as it would have been obvious that at least one of them had been involved in an assault.

“I know this crime has caused upset and anxiety in the Jewish community, particularly as this has happened just prior to the start of the Jewish High Holy Days, and I want to offer reassurance that hate crime will not be tolerated and we will do everything we can to stop it.

“For the past few weeks, we have been working closely with the community and Community Security Trust to put in place extra measures in the lead up to the High Holy Days period, with plans already in place to step up patrols in the area and increase security over the coming weeks.”

Amanda Bomsztyk, Northern Regional Director of the Community Security Trust (CST) added: “We would like to thank Greater Manchester Police for its prompt action in this particularly serious and worrying incident.

“There is far too much Anti-Semitic abuse and violence, and we hope these arrests will send a strong message, providing some reassurance to the Jewish community.”

Greater Manchester Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Lloyd added: “These arrests demonstrate that the police are taking this incident very seriously, which I hope gives reassurance to the Jewish community and the wider public. I would urge anyone with information about this incident to come forward and report it to police. Moshe Fuerst has suffered terrible injuries and I hope him and his friends make a speedy and full recovery. 

“The police are treating this as a hate crime and, while we don’t know the full details of this particular incident, I want to make clear that all reports of hate crime will be dealt with seriously. We have seen a significant rise in reports of hate crime and in particular anti-Semitic hate crime reports, which have risen by more than half over the past year.

"The CST has recognised that much of this is a result of the work that has been done by police, other agencies and local communities to build real confidence that victims will be taken seriously when they come forward.”

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111. You can also report via the dedicated hate crime reporting website.