The terrorist who U.S. authorities tried to murder people at a synagogue in suburban Detroit on Thursday was the brother of a Hezbollah commander whom Israel killed last week, the IDF said on Sunday.
Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, 41, who was born in Lebanon and had become a naturalized U.S. citizen, was the brother of Ibrahim Mohamad Ghazali, a Hezbollah commander who was responsible for managing weapons operations within a specialized branch of the terrorist group’s Badr Unit responsible for firing hundreds of rockets at Israeli civilians, the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit wrote on X.
Ayman Mohamad Ghazali drove a vehicle carrying explosives into the hallway of a large Michigan synagogue complex on March 12, which includes a school.
He died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Mich., Jennifer Runyan, FBI Detroit’s special agent in charge, said on Friday.
“At some point during the gunfight, Ghazali suffers a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head,” Runyan said during a press conference.
The suspected perpetrator was living in Dearborn Heights and he drove to the synagogue while armed, authorities said.
The synagogue’s director of security was wounded in the incident, during which the vehicle Ghazali was driving caught fire. Dozens of officers were treated for smoke inhalation. The children and staff inside the building were evacuated safely.
“In the bed of the truck, we found large quantities of commercial-grade fireworks and several jugs of flammable liquid that we believe to be gasoline, some of which had been consumed in the fire,” Runyan said.
