Hostage Situation At Texas Synagogue Ends With Suspect Dead, Safe Hostages

A situation that could have been far worse ended when the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team breached a Texas Synagogue held hostage, killing the suspect without further loss of life.

Washington Post:

Law enforcement rescued a rabbi and other people who were being held hostage at a Dallas-area synagogue on Saturday night, ending an hours-long standoff as the suspect was confirmed dead.

“All hostages are out alive and safe,” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) tweeted about 9:30 p.m. local time, after a loud boom and what sounded like gunshots erupted from the area. Colleyville Police Chief Michael Miller confirmed that “the subject is deceased” but would not say whether had been killed by law enforcement or himself.

Miller and FBI Special Agent in Charge Matthew DeSarno declined in a news conference after the standoff’s conclusion to share more information about the identity of the suspect, saying an investigation with “global reach” is underway.

A law enforcement official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the ongoing investigation said the man’s motive for taking hostages appears to be his anger over the U.S. imprisonment of Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani woman being held in federal prison in Fort Worth for trying to kill U.S. soldiers. Siddiqui, who was convicted on terrorism charges in 2010 and sentenced to 86 years in prison after opening fire on Americans, has become a cause celebre in Islamist militant circles that have elicited frequent demands for her release.

The confrontation began during Saturday services at Congregation Beth Israel in this suburb of Fort Worth and Dallas, which were streamed on the synagogue’s Facebook page for practitioners to tune in from their homes. Police were called at about 11 a.m. after a man with a gun and explosives captured four people, including the rabbi, the law enforcement official said. After “constant contact” between negotiators and the suspect, one man was released uninjured shortly after 5 p.m., Miller said.

About 9 p.m., the FBI’s hostage rescue team breached the synagogue. Authorities said the team flew from Quantico, Va., that day. In total, at least 200 members of law enforcement responded to the tense scene, DeSarno told reporters.

“It’s very likely this situation would have ended very badly earlier in the day had we not had professional, consistent negotiations,” DeSarno said.

In the Facebook live stream of the Shabbat service, which has since been taken down, a man seemed to be speaking on the phone off-camera, sometimes shouting, sounding increasingly stressed. He said he wanted to speak with his “sister,” seemingly referring to Siddiqui with an expression of solidarity. The hostage-taker was not the brother of Siddiqui, according to two people familiar with the family.

Siddiqui’s attorney, Marwa Elbially, before the standoff ended said the suspect was not a member of her family, adding that they do not know of the individual’s identity or approve of his actions. “They condemn any type of violence done in [Siddiqui’s] name,” Elbially said.

Stacey Silverman, who has been a member of the congregation for 13 years and was watching the service when the hostages were taken, said the suspect could be heard saying that he had flown to the area from 5,000 miles away, and that he said he chose a synagogue because the United States “only cares about Jewish lives.”

Minutes before the live stream cut off, the man could be heard talking on the phone, sharing chilling words to whomever he was speaking with: “Don’t cry about me. I’m going to die.”

“This has been a nightmare for our community,” Silverman, 53, told The Washington Post, describing Congregation Beth Israel as “small and close knit.” The rabbi, Charlie Cytron-Walker, is “hugely respected” and “a friend to all,” she said.

A spokeswoman for the FBI’s Dallas division, Katie Chaumont, said early Sunday she was not yet aware if the bureau would be investigating the episode as a hate crime.