DETROIT, March 12 (Reuters) – The Michigan State Police reported an active shooting incident on Thursday at the Temple Israel Synagogue in the Detroit suburb of West Bloomfield, Michigan, and law enforcement authorities rushed to the scene.
Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard told CNN that there were no confirmed injuries, “except potentially the shooter.” Fox News Channel, citing an unnamed senior law enforcement source, said the shooter was believed to be dead.
No other details were immediately available, but aerial news footage from over the synagogue showed plumes of smoke rising from the roof of the building. Large numbers of police and fire department vehicles converged on the scene.
Temple Israel runs an early childhood center that provides childcare and education to children as young as 6 weeks old, according to its website.
Local news media reported that children from the daycare center, some of whom had escaped to nearby homes, were being ushered away from the synagogue on buses to be reunited with their parents.
FBI Director Kash Patel wrote on X: “FBI personnel are on the scene with partners in Michigan and responding to the apparent vehicle ramming and active shooter situation out of Temple Israel Synagogue in West Bloomfield Township, Michigan.”
The Jewish Federation of Detroit posted a message on its Facebook page saying its affiliated agencies were “currently in precautionary lockdown” in response to the Temple Israel incident.
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. “In addition, 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 neighbors, confront hate whenever it appears, and build stronger communities.”
Temple Israel was organized in 1941 and has grown to include more than 12,000 members, according to its website.
(Reporting by Jasper Ward in Washington; Writing by Steve Gorman; Editing by Scott Malone, Chris Reese and Lisa Shumaker)
Comments