Authorities have identified the man who drove a vehicle into a large synagogue near Detroit as Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, a 41‑year‑old naturalized US citizen born in Lebanon. The incident occurred on Thursday at Temple Israel, one of the nation’s largest Reform Jewish congregations, and was being investigated by the FBI as a targeted act of violence against the Jewish community.
A Lebanese official told The Associated Press that Ghazali recently lost four family members, his two brothers, a niece and a nephew, in an Israeli airstrike in Mashgharah, Lebanon, during the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The official said the relatives were killed at their home while breaking their fast during Ramadan.
Sky News and NBC reported that Ghazali's two brothers were members of Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militant group.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed that Ghazali was a resident of Dearborn Heights, Michigan, and became a US citizen in 2016 after immigrating on a family‑based visa. He was killed during the attack when synagogue security officers engaged him after he rammed the vehicle into the building.
Temple Israel was hosting activities at its early childhood center at the time of the attack. About 140 children, staff and congregants were inside the facility, but no civilians were seriously injured. One security guard was struck by the vehicle and briefly knocked unconscious, and about 30 law enforcement officers were treated for smoke inhalation after the vehicle caught fire.
US authorities have not yet confirmed a motive, and the FBI has said the investigation into the reasons behind the attack is ongoing. Ghazali reportedly posted images of his deceased relatives on social media hours before the synagogue incident, but there is no established link between the loss and his actions in Michigan.
Michigan’s governor and Jewish community representatives condemned the violence and US President Donald Trump called the incident “terrible."
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