Panic and chaos erupted at a synagogue outside Detroit on Thursday after an armed man rammed his vehicle into the premises in a violent attack that authorities say targeted the Jewish community.
Panic and chaos erupted at a synagogue outside Detroit on Thursday after an armed man rammed his vehicle into the premises in a violent attack that authorities say targeted the Jewish community. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) later identified the attacker as Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, a 41-year-old naturalised US citizen originally born in Lebanon.
According to officials, Ghazali drove his vehicle through a hallway at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield Township near Detroit, Michigan, triggering a swift response from security officers who opened fire and killed him at the scene. Authorities said the vehicle later caught fire following the confrontation.
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Temple Israel, which has nearly 12,000 members, is considered one of the largest Reform synagogues in the United States, according to the Associated Press.
Federal records revealed that Ghazali entered the United States in 2011 on an immediate relative visa as the spouse of a US citizen. He was later granted American citizenship in 2016.
The incident unfolded while staff and children were present at the synagogue’s early childhood centre. Officials confirmed that none of the roughly 140 children or staff members inside the facility were injured.
However, one security officer was struck by the attacker’s vehicle and briefly knocked unconscious. In the aftermath, dozens of responding law enforcement personnel were treated for smoke inhalation caused by the fire.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has launched a probe into the incident and is treating it as a targeted act of violence against the Jewish community. Investigators are still working to determine the exact motive behind the attack.
“What drove this person into action has to be determined by the investigation,” said Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard.
Reacting to the incident, US President Donald Trump said that he had been fully briefed and described the attack as a “terrible thing.”
Officials added that the investigation remains ongoing as federal and local authorities attempt to piece together the circumstances that led to the violent episode.
The attack marks the second violent incident at a house of worship in Michigan within a year. Last September, a former Marine shot four people at a church north of Detroit before setting the building on fire.
The FBI later said the attacker was motivated by “anti-religious beliefs” against The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
