NEW YORK (WABC) — The war in Iran is causing security concerns across the United States after two violent incidents.
In Michigan, a man is dead after attempting to ram his vehicle into a synagogue in broad daylight.
Investigators, say the man may have had family involved in the conflict in the Middle East.
The attack is raising security concerns in New York City.
Out of an abundance of caution, the NYPD has deployed high visibility patrols Friday morning outside Jewish institutions after Thursday’s chaotic scene in Bloomfield, Michigan, as a Lebanese man rammed his car through the front doors of a synagogue.
Law enforcement said the 41-year-old suspect Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, a naturalized U.S. citizen posted on social media that his relatives were killed in the ongoing Israeli military strikes.
The feds are getting a clear picture on what had driven Ghazali to get behind the wheel, with a rifle Thursday afternoon, causing havoc on one of the nation’s largest reform synagogues. and a place where pre-school children were learning.
Synagogue security had opened fire on Ghazali before the vehicle burst into flames. The driver was found dead in the burning vehicle.
Investigators swept for explosives. The attack underscoring the elevated domestic threat authorities have been worried about. One eyewitness described the terror on his doorstep.
“I saw someone lying on the ground and that person happened to be one of the head of security who got hit by the car and after that i heard gunshots bang, bang, bang,” said Dustin Shaw, an eyewitness.
“We know there’s evil in the world and we know they only have to get it right once and sometimes they do. They may not come on anyone’s radar and they show up,” said Sheriff Michael Bouchard, Oakland County Sheriff’s Office. “But what happens when they show up, that’s when training and preparation kicks in. The security staff did an amazing job.”
Roughly 140 small children were reunited with their parents once the temple was secure. None of them were harmed according to authorities.
The truck used in the attack, according to what sources tell ABC News, contained fireworks and an unidentified chemical agent that ignited soon after the crash.
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