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Police say a suspected gunman who attacked a Detroit-area synagogue with a vehicle is dead, and that one security guard was injured during the incident.
Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said a person drove a car through Temple Israel’s doors and was driving down the hall with “purpose” and struck a security guard. Security personnel opened fire on the vehicle, Bouchard said.
One person was found dead in the car although Bouchard said it’s unclear how that person died.
No children or staff were injured, but that the security person hit by the car was taken to the hospital for treatment, he said.
“That individual should be okay,” Bouchard said.
WATCH | Suspect in synagogue attack dead:
Suspect dead, security guard injured after Michigan synagogue attack
Police say a suspected gunman who attacked a Detroit-area synagogue with a vehicle is dead and that one security guard was injured during the incident. Police added that security exchanged gunfire with the suspect but did not say how the suspect died.
The synagogue houses an early-childhood centre that provides childcare and education to children as young as six weeks old, according to its website.
All of the children were safely removed from the building and were to be reunited with their parents, police said.
Heightened security
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer issued a statement saying she was tracking developments. “This is heartbreaking,” the governor said. “Michigan’s Jewish community should be able to live and practice their faith in peace.”
Jewish organizations throughout the United States have been operating under heightened security since U.S. and Israeli forces launched airstrikes on Iran on February 28, sparking an intensifying war across the Middle East.
“We’ve been talking for two weeks about the potential, sadly, of this happening. So there was no lack of preparation,” Bouchard said on CNN. “All Jewish facilities in the area are going to have a lot of extra presence around it until we figure this out.”
“Antisemitism has no place in Michigan and cannot be tolerated,” Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said in a statement. “In moments like these, it’s more important than ever that we come together, stand with our neighbours, confront hate whenever it appears, and build stronger communities.”
Three synagogues in Ontario have been shot at in the past week — two in North York and one in Vaughan. No one was injured.
Largest Reform synagogue
Temple Israel calls itself the nation’s largest Reform synagogue, with 12,000 members, according to its website. In addition to the early childhood education centre, it offers educational programs for families and adults.
The website 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 advised all Jewish organizations in the area “to go into lockout protocol — nobody in or out of your building.”