An armed man drove his vehicle into Temple Israel in West Bloomfield Township, Michigan, on Thursday and was fatally shot by synagogue security in what federal investigators are calling a “targeted act of violence against the Jewish community.”

Federal officials have since identified the attacker as 41-year-old Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Lebanon. According to the Department of Homeland Security, Ghazali entered the U.S. in 2011 and was granted citizenship in 2016.

The attacker crashed through the doors of one of the nation’s largest Reform synagogues and drove down a hallway before the vehicle caught fire, Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard said. Security officers engaged the suspect with gunfire, and he was found dead inside the vehicle.

All 140 children at the synagogue’s early childhood center, along with staff and teachers, were unharmed, according to Temple Israel.

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. @FBIDetroit

— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) March 12, 2026

Jennifer Runyan, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Detroit field office, described the incident as “deeply disturbing and tragic” during a Thursday evening press conference. While she initially declined to name the suspect, DHS records now show Ghazali had been living in the Dearborn area prior to the attack.

“What drove this person into action has to be determined by the investigation,” Bouchard said.

One security officer was struck by the vehicle and knocked unconscious but is expected to recover. Thirty law enforcement officers were treated for smoke inhalation after the vehicle ignited inside the building.

West Bloomfield Police Chief Dale Young said temple security “engaged the individual and neutralized the threat.”

The suspect was armed with a rifle, according to a law enforcement source who spoke to the Associated Press. Emergency responders found what appeared to be explosives in the vehicle, CNN reported.

The FBI conducted active shooter training for Temple Israel staff in January 2026. Bouchard said local law enforcement had maintained close contact with area religious institutions for weeks before Thursday’s attack.

“We’ve been talking for two weeks about the potential, sadly, for this happening, so there was no lack of preparation,” Bouchard said.

Steven Ingber, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Detroit, said the attack was not surprising given the current threat environment. “I’d love to say that I’m shocked, that I’m surprised, but I’m not,” Ingber said. “This will not change us. This will not deter us.”

Synagogues worldwide have increased security since the U.S. and Israel launched strikes against Iran on February 28. In October 2025, an attacker drove a car into people outside a Manchester synagogue on Yom Kippur and stabbed two people to death before police killed him.