The attack on Temple Israel in West Bloomfield Township today hits close to home for Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. She said some of her family members live down the street from the synagogue and others are members of the congregation.
She was at Temple Israel last year to give a presentation about hate crimes and domestic terrorism, she told CNN’s Jake Tapper. Now, that violence became a reality when a suspect rammed their vehicle filled with explosives into the synagogue, officials said.
“Here we are today in a totally predictable fashion having an act of domestic terrorism right here at that same spot,” she said.
The security guards who saw and opened fire on the suspect were “well-trained” and “well-prepared,” the attorney general said. Law enforcement is investigating “out of an abundance of caution” to make sure there was only one person involved, but right now it appears that the person who was found dead in the vehicle was responsible for the attack, Nessel said.
Nessel said she is worried that a rise of antisemitism in America is going to make people afraid to go to synagogues or other Jewish spaces.
Nessel, a Democrat, said she thinks “it’s time for people to speak up about what we see happening in American politics right now” in both parties to combat hateful rhetoric. She also believes current international events are playing a role.
“I think we can absolutely draw a nexus between the war in Iran and the events of today,” Nessel said. “I don’t think it’s a coincidence that out of all the synagogues or temples that this individual could have picked, he picked the one that is named Temple Israel.”