The four people held hostage in a synagogue in Coleville, Texas were released safely Saturday night through Sunday, and the alleged perpetrator, who was seeking the release of a Pakistani convicted of terrorism, was killed in a police raid.
The 10-hour hostage-taking at the Coleville synagogue has raised concerns among Jews in the United States and the Israeli government.
“The Hostage Rescue Team has stormed the synagogue and the suspect is dead,” Collieville Police Chief Michael Miller told reporters.
All four hostages – four adults – have been released alive and well, Texas Gov. Craig Abbott said earlier.
Matt Desarno, the FBI’s special agent in Dallas, said the four hostages, including the rabbi, did not need medical help and would soon be returning to their families. “It did not hurt them,” he added.
Journalists at the scene said they heard explosions and gunfire shortly before Governor Abbott announced the end of the hostage situation. “The prayers were answered. “All the hostages are alive and well,” Abbott wrote in a Twitter post.
A few hours earlier and while difficult negotiations were underway between the police and the alleged perpetrator, the first hostage was released.
The ABC News network, citing a source at the scene, had broadcast before the release of the first hostage that the suspect was armed and that he stated that he had placed explosive devices in unknown places.
The hostage-taking took place at the Beth Israel Synagogue in Coleville, a city of about 23,000 people, about 40 miles (40 km) from Dallas.
During the live broadcast of the operation on Facebook, which was seen by the French Agency before it was interrupted, the voice of a man was heard, sometimes agitated. “I will die,” the man said, urging the stranger he was talking to on the phone to talk to his “sister.”
The suspect, according to ABC News, demanded the release of Pakistani Afia Sindiki, who was sentenced in 2010 by a New York court to 86 years in prison for attempting to attack American soldiers while being held in Afghanistan. Cindy is currently being held at the Fort Worth Jail Hospital near Dallas. Jihadist organizations have called for her release in the past.
Aafia Sindiki “is by no means involved” in the hostage-taking, her lawyer told CNN. She said that the alleged perpetrator is not Sindiki’s brother, assuring that her client condemns his actions.
Police in Coleville had evacuated residents from the surrounding area and called on people to avoid the spot.
The FBI has launched an investigation into the alleged perpetrator, who has been identified, according to Agent Matt DeSarno, but has not been named.
The incident caused a sensation in the Jewish community in the USA. Ellen Smith, who goes to the synagogue, spoke to CNN about a “shocking and frightening” situation. She said, however, that she was not surprised by this attack on the Jewish community. “Incidents of anti-Semitism have increased recently,” he said. “We feel almost desperate.”
President Joe Biden has vowed to tackle “anti-Semitism and the rise of extremism in the country” while praising the work of security forces. Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Herzog, for his part, said he was “grateful” that all the hostages were released safe and sound. Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett also said he was monitoring the situation.
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