Man who rammed car into Michigan synagogue was US citizen born in Lebanon: Officials
The suspect, Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, was shot dead by security officers after he drove his vehicle into a hallway at Temple Israel synagogue, one of the largest Reform synagogues in the United States.
Law enforcement escort families away from the Temple Israel synagogue Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
A man who drove a vehicle into a synagogue in the US state of Michigan has been identified as a 41-year-old naturalised American citizen born in Lebanon, federal officials said Thursday.
The suspect, Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, was shot dead by security officers after he drove his vehicle into a hallway at Temple Israel synagogue, one of the largest Reform synagogues in the United States.
Who was Ayman Mohamad Ghazali?
Ghazali was born in Lebanon and entered the United States in 2011 on an immediate relative visa as the spouse of a US citizen. Officials from the Department of Homeland Security said he later became a naturalised US citizen in 2016.
Authorities have not yet determined what led him to carry out the attack.
Investigators are still trying to determine the motive. “We believe this was a targeted act of violence against the Jewish community,” Jennifer Runyan, special agent in charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Detroit field office, said at a news conference.
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Mike Bouchard, sheriff of Oakland County, Michigan, said authorities have not yet established what led the suspect to carry out the attack.
“What drove this person into action has to be determined by the investigation,” Bouchard said.
No children or staff inside the synagogue were injured. The building houses an early childhood centre with about 140 children. A security officer was struck by the vehicle and briefly knocked unconscious but did not suffer life-threatening injuries. About 30 law enforcement officers were treated for smoke inhalation.
Dale Young, chief of the West Bloomfield Police Department, said synagogue security officers “engaged the individual and neutralised the threat”.
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Police respond to the scene of a shooting and vehicle attack near Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Mich., on Thursday, March 12, 2026. (Jacob Hamilton/Ann Arbor News via AP)
Witnesses inside the synagogue described the moment of the crash. Cassi Cohen, a staff member at Temple Israel, told the AP she heard a loud bang and quickly locked herself and colleagues inside an office.
“When I heard the crash, I knew it was bad,” she said.Parents later rushed to the synagogue to collect their children after authorities cleared the building. Some families were reunited at a nearby Jewish community centre.
The attack comes amid heightened security at synagogues following the war between Israel and Iran, which began after US and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February.
US President Donald Trump said he had been briefed on the incident and called it a “terrible thing”.
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Meanwhile, in a post on X a source familiar with the situation said the suspect had shared photos online of family members, including children, who were reportedly killed in a recent Israeli strike in Mashghara in Lebanon. Authorities have not confirmed that claim.
NEWS: The man who rammed his explosives-laden truck into a Michigan synagogue today was named Ayman Ghazaleh, according to a source familiar with the situation. Ghazaleh posted photos overnight of his family members, including young children, who were killed in a recent Israeli… pic.twitter.com/KEBeJPAZsD
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Law enforcement escort families away from the Temple Israel synagogue Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
