Suspect dead and all hostages safe after FBI storms Texas synagogue
An FBI hostage rescue team stormed a Texas synagogue Saturday night, ending an almost 11-hour standoff with a hostage-taker who claimed to have a bomb and may have ties to al-Qaeda, CNN reports. The suspect was shot and killed.
According to CNN, four people, including the congregation's rabbi, were held hostage Saturday at Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas. The suspect released one hostage around 5:00 p.m., and the other three were freed following the FBI raid, which started around 10:00 p.m.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Services were being livestreamed at the time, and the hostage-taker could be heard ranting about America and Islam. He also referred to himself as "the guy with the bomb" before the feed cut out.
The hostage-taker demanded the release of Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani neuroscientist convicted in 2010 of attempting to kill U.S. service members in Afghanistan and now serving an 86-year sentence in a Texas prison. Siddiqui's attorney told CNN "she has absolutely no involvement with" with the attack.
According to FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge Matthew DeSarno, the suspect has been identified, but authorities are not yet ready to reveal his name. DeSarno also confirmed that the FBI's offices in London and Tel Aviv are participating in the ongoing investigation.
-
‘Those rights don’t exist to protect criminals’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Key Bangladesh election returns old guard to powerSpeed Read The Bangladesh Nationalist Party claimed a decisive victory
-
Judge blocks Hegseth from punishing Kelly over videoSpeed Read Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth pushed for the senator to be demoted over a video in which he reminds military officials they should refuse illegal orders
-
Maxwell pleads 5th, offers Epstein answers for pardonSpeed Read She offered to talk only if she first received a pardon from President Donald Trump
-
Hong Kong jails democracy advocate Jimmy LaiSpeed Read The former media tycoon was sentenced to 20 years in prison
-
Ex-Illinois deputy gets 20 years for Massey murderSpeed Read Sean Grayson was sentenced for the 2024 killing of Sonya Massey
-
Sole suspect in Brown, MIT shootings found deadSpeed Read The mass shooting suspect, a former Brown grad student, died of self-inflicted gunshot wounds
-
France makes first arrests in Louvre jewels heistSpeed Read Two suspects were arrested in connection with the daytime theft of royal jewels from the museum
-
Trump pardons crypto titan who enriched familySpeed Read Binance founder Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty in 2023 to enabling money laundering while CEO of the cryptocurrency exchange
-
Thieves nab French crown jewels from LouvreSpeed Read A gang of thieves stole 19th century royal jewels from the Paris museum’s Galerie d’Apollon
-
Arsonist who attacked Shapiro gets 25-50 yearsSpeed Read Cody Balmer broke into the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion and tried to burn it down
