Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, the 41-year-old Lebanese-born US citizen who drove a vehicle into a Michigan synagogue complex on Thursday, lost four family members in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon last week, a local official has confirmed.
Ghazali was killed by security guards at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield Township before he could harm staff, teachers, or the 140 children at the early childhood centre. The FBI is leading the investigation and described the attack as an act of violence targeting the Jewish community.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, Ghazali entered the US in 2011 on a family visa and became a naturalised citizen in 2016. He worked at a Mediterranean restaurant in Dearborn Heights but had been absent in recent weeks.
The airstrike on 5 March in the eastern Lebanese town of Mashgharah killed Ghazali's brothers Kassim and Ibrahim, along with Ibrahim's children Ali and Fatima. Ibrahim's wife was seriously wounded. The mayor of Mashgharah said he did not know why the residence was targeted, noting Ghazali was not affiliated with any political party.
Thursday's incident caused the suspect's vehicle to catch fire, with black smoke billowing from the building. One security officer was knocked unconscious but not seriously injured, and 30 law enforcement officers were treated for smoke inhalation.
