US authorities have launched an investigation “international in scope”, Sunday, January 16, after the ten-hour hostage-taking in a Texas synagogue. The FBI, in fact, has announced that it has identified the kidnapper as a British national named Malik Faisal Akram and 44 years old. “We will investigate the hostage taker and his contacts”, said on the night of Saturday to Sunday Matt DeSarno, special agent of the FBI of Dallas.
The United Kingdom assured, through the voice of its ambassador in Washington Karen Pierce on Twitter, “provide full support to Texas and US law enforcement”. The head of British diplomacy, Liz Truss, condemned a “act of terrorism and anti-Semitism”.
I pay tribute to the US emergency services & thank them for their brave efforts in securing the safe release of those held. British authorities — in the UK & US — are providing our full support to Texas and US law enforcement agencies.
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— Karen Pierce (@KarenPierceUK) January 16, 2022
The hostage-taking ended with a police intervention, a loud bang and gunshots in the Beth Israel Congregation synagogue in Colleyville, a town of about 23,000 people about 40 miles from Dallas. And by the death of the suspect – without it being known at this stage whether he committed suicide or was shot dead by the police. The four hostages, including a respected local rabbi, Charlie Cytron-Walker, had all been released unharmed.
According to several American media, the hostage taker demanded in particular the release of Aafia Siddiqui, currently detained in a hospital-prison in Fort Worth, near Dallas. This Pakistani scientist was sentenced in 2010 to 86 years in prison for having tried to shoot American soldiers while she was detained in Afghanistan. She was the first woman to be suspected by the United States of ties to Al-Qaeda, earning her the nickname “Lady Al-Qaeda”.
The President of the United States, Joe Biden, seemed to confirm this press information. “It was related to someone” Who “has been in prison for ten years”, said the American leader, without further details. “It was an act of terrorism”, he hammered, considering that the hostage taker had apparently obtained his weapons “in the street”. At this stage, “there is no indication of the involvement of anyone else”, US federal police said in a statement, adding only that investigators were continuing to investigate. “analyze the evidence in the synagogue” and that investigations were continuing.
Jihadist movements had in the past demanded the release of Aafia Siddiqui, but this “is absolutely not involved” in the hostage-taking, however assured in a statement to CNN (in English) his lawyer.