Rescue ends synagogue standoff
Hostages who had been held for hours inside a Texas synagogue were rescued last night, according to Governor Greg Abbott, nearly 12 hours after the standoff began.
‘‘Prayers answered. All hostages are out alive and safe,’’ Abbott tweeted.
Abbott’s tweet came not long after a loud bang and what sounded like gunfire was heard coming from the synagogue, where authorities said a man had held people captive as he demanded the release of a Pakistani neuroscientist who was convicted of trying to kill US Army officers in Afghanistan.
Details of the rescue were not immediately released and it was unclear whether the hostagetaker was dead or alive.
At least four hostages were initially believed to be inside the synagogue, according to law enforcement officials. The synagogue’s rabbi was believed to be among the hostages, one of the officials said. One of the officials said the man claimed to be armed but authorities had not confirmed whether he was.
The Colleyville Police Department said one hostage was released uninjured shortly after 5pm Saturday, local time. The man was expected to be reunited with his family and did not require medical attention. A law enforcement official said the first hostage who was released was not the rabbi.
Authorities are still trying to discern a precise motive for the attack. The hostage-taker was heard demanding the release of Aafia Siddiqui, the Pakistani neuroscientist suspected of having ties to al Qaeda, the officials said. He also said he wanted to be able to speak with her, according to the officials. Siddiqui is in federal prison in Texas.
The officials said investigators have not positively identified the man and cautioned that the information was based on a preliminary investigation.
A rabbi in New York City received a call from the rabbi believed to be held hostage in the synagogue to demand Siddiqui’s release, a law enforcement official said. The New York rabbi then called 911 .
Police were first called to the synagogue around 11am and people were evacuated from the surrounding neighbourhood soon after that, FBI Dallas spokesperson Katie Chaumont said. The services were being livestreamed on the synagogue’s Facebook page for a time. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that an angry man could be heard ranting and talking about religion at times during the livestream, which didn’t show what was happening inside the synagogue.
Shortly before 2pm, the man said, ‘‘You got to do something. I don’t want to see this guy dead.’’ Moments later, the feed cut out. A Meta company spokesperson later confirmed that Facebook removed the video.