WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich. (AP) — A man armed with a rifle rammed a vehicle into a major synagogue in a Detroit suburb and was fatally shot by security. The FBI says it was “targeted act of violence against the Jewish community.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich. (AP) — An attacker armed with a rifle rammed his vehicle into one of the nation’s largest reform synagogues Thursday, driving through a hallway as security opened fire, fatally shooting him, The Associated Press has learned.
The vehicle caught fire after crashing into Temple Israel in West Bloomfield Township, just outside Detroit, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke to the AP.
None of the synagogue’s staff, teachers or the 140 children at its early childhood center were injured, Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard said.
The attacker drove through a set of doors and into the hallway where something in the vehicle ignited, Bouchard said. “He was traveling with purpose down the hall, from my look at the video,” Bouchard said.
Investigators were still working to identify the man and a possible motive, said the person who could not publicly discuss details of the investigation and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity. The person cautioned that the investigation was still in the early stages.
In the minutes after the attack, smoke billowed from the synagogue. One security officer was hit by the vehicle and knocked unconscious but did not suffer life-threatening injuries, the sheriff said.
The synagogue has multiple security officers, he said, and at least one fired at the suspect, who was found dead inside his vehicle.
“We can’t say what killed him at this point but security did engage the suspect with gunfire,” the sheriff said, adding that it was possible the attacker killed himself or died some other way.
In a statement posted on Facebook, the synagogue praised its security personnel “who are truly heroes" for neutralizing the gunman.
“Our teachers followed their training and kept the children safe and calm,” it said.
Parents raced to retrieve children who were in the synagogue
About a dozen parents sprinted to get their children soon after authorities cleared the building. Other families were reunited at a nearby Jewish Community Center.
Allison Jacobs, whose 18-month-old daughter is enrolled in Temple Israel’s day care, said she got a message from a teacher saying the children were OK even before she knew what happened.
“There are no words. I was in complete and utter shock,” she told the AP. “I was hoping that it was a false report.”
Jacobs, whose family is Jewish, said she tries not to think about all that’s going on in the world.
“You never think that this is actually going to happen to you,” she said. “But I know that it’s — it’s just terrible. This morning I was mourning the loss of the school that got hit in Iran.”
Synagogues increased security since the start of Iran war
Synagogues around the world have been on edge and have been ramping up security since the U.S. and Israel launched a war with Iran with missile strikes on Feb. 28.
The FBI has warned that Iranian operatives may be planning drone attacks on targets in California. Two men brought explosives to a far-right protest outside the New York mayoral mansion on Saturday. Investigators allege they were inspired by the Islamic State extremist group.
And an assailant drove a car into people outside an Orthodox synagogue in Manchester, England, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar. He stabbed two people to death before officers shot and killed him.
President Donald Trump said he had been fully briefed on the attack, calling it a “terrible thing.”
Attack brings back memories of prior massacres
Oakland County is Michigan’s second-largest county with roughly 1.3 million people. The majority of Detroit-area Jewish residents live there.
“This is heartbreaking,” Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in a statement. “Michigan’s Jewish community should be able to live and practice their faith in peace.”
It was the second attack at a house of worship in Michigan within the past year. Last September, a former Marine fatally shot four people at a church north of Detroit and set it ablaze. The FBI later said he was motivated by “anti-religious beliefs” against The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Temple Israel has 12,000 members, according to its website, which says the synagogue is “passionate about helping Jewish communities across the globe” and that its mission is to “create a community building through the lens of Reform Judaism.”
The Jewish Federation of Detroit briefly advised all Jewish organizations in the area to lock down.
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, a survivor of the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue massacre, said in a statement that the Michigan attack demonstrates yet again the consequences of hatred.
“We lose our humanity when we seek violent means as a solution,” said Myers, rabbi of the Tree of Life Congregation, where 11 worshippers died in the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history. “No one should dwell in fear because of who they are.”
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This story has been corrected to show that the shooting at a church north of Detroit happened in September, not October.
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Durkin Richer reported from Washington, D.C. Associated Press reporters Ed White in Detroit; Todd Richmond in Madison, Wisconsin; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio; and Eric Tucker in Washington, D.C., contributed.