Biden Calls Texas Synagogue Hostage Situation 'an Act of Terror'

© REUTERS / SHELBY TAUBERA law enforcement vehicle is seen in the area where a man has reportedly taken people hostage at a synagogue during services that were being streamed live, in Colleyville, Texas, U.S. January 15, 2022. REUTERS/Shelby Tauber
A law enforcement vehicle is seen in the area where a man has reportedly taken people hostage at a synagogue during services that were being streamed live, in Colleyville, Texas, U.S. January 15, 2022. REUTERS/Shelby Tauber - Sputnik International, 1920, 16.01.2022
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An armed man entered a synagogue in the small town of Colleyville, Texas, taking hostage four of those inside, including the rabbi. Eventually, all hostages were released and the hostage-taker was killed. His brother reportedly was a convicted terrorist with links to al-Qaeda*.
US President Joe Biden has called the attack on a synagogue in the town of Colleyville, Texas an "act of terror" after discussing the incident with the attorney general.
Biden said there was not enough information to establish what the attacker's motives were, but added that he allegedly got his weapons from the street. POTUS lamented a lack of focus on strict control over gun purchases and sales, as well as the trafficking of ghost guns.

"The idea of background checks are critical, but you can't stop something like this if someone’s on the streets buying something from somebody else on the streets".

U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the December 2021 jobs report during a speech in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., January 7, 2022. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - Sputnik International
Joe Biden
US President
Vice-President Kamala Harris also spoke up about the hostage situation at the synagogue, thanking law enforcement for their help in resolving the situation and reaching out to the Jewish community.
"We stand in solidarity with the Congregation Beth Israel community and the entire Jewish community".
US Vice President Kamala Harris speaks while she ceremonially swears in Rufus Gifford (out of frame) as US Chief of Protocol, in the Vice President's office at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, DC, on January 14, 2022. - Sputnik International
Kamala Harris
US Vice President
The FBI also released the information about the gunman, identifying him as 44-year-old British national Malik Faisal Akram.

What Happened in Congregation Beth Israel Synagogue?

Four people were taken hostage inside the Texas synagogue on 15 January as the rabbi led the morning Shabbat service. The livestream of the service suggested that the man, armed with an unidentified weapon, was apparently suffering emotional anguish, demanding that his sister be released and claiming he was "going to die doing this".
The attacker released one of the hostages at some point, but the rest were freed in the FBI raid. The gunman himself was killed in the process.
A father carries his child out of a Catholic Mass service near the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on January 15, 2022 in Colleyville, Texas. Police responded to a hostage situation after reports of a man with a gun was holding people captive at the synagogue. - Sputnik International, 1920, 16.01.2022
Colleyville Synagogue Crisis: Hostage-Taker Was Reportedly a British Citizen
The motives for the attack remain unknown at the moment. Earlier media reports claimed that the attacker's brother was a convicted terrorist with links to al-Qaeda*. Several reports citing a statement made by the UK Foreign Office, claimed that the gunman was a British citizen.
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