Texas Synagogue Hostages Safe, Suspect Dead [VIDEO]

ABC News reports:

A 10-hour-long hostage situation at a synagogue in the Dallas-Fort Worth area came to a conclusion late Saturday with all of the hostages safe and the suspect dead, law enforcement officials said.

An armed suspect claiming to have bombs in unknown locations took a rabbi and three others hostage at the Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville before noon Saturday, a source familiar with the situation told ABC News. One hostage was released uninjured at about 5 p.m. local time, Colleyville police said.

Colleyville Police Chief Michael Miller said an elite FBI hostage rescue team breached the synagogue at about 9 p.m. local time and rescued the hostages. Miller and FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge Matt DeSarno confirmed the suspect was dead in a “shooting incident,” but did not provide specifics.

The Guardian reports:



A man who was shot dead by FBI officers after taking four people hostage at a Texas synagogue is understood to be British. On Sunday, a Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) spokesperson said: “We are aware of the death of a British man in Texas and are in contact with the local authorities.”

In the live stream, the hostage-taker was heard demanding the release of Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani neuroscientist suspected of having ties to al-Qaida, who was convicted of trying to kill US military officers while in custody in Afghanistan, a law enforcement official said. Siddiqui is in federal prison in Texas.