As of Saturday, January 15, the hostage crisis that was plaguing a Colleyville, Texas synagogue ended and the FBI is now investigating the situation. The FBI is investigating the standoff as a terror-related issue. The rabbi who was in charge of officiating the services spoke to CBS about the standoff. 

Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker said that his experience was as a “calm presence” in hospital rooms and other difficult moments that helped him to keep his composure and remain collected during the standoff. The hostage-taker, who is now deceased, was identified by authorities as 44-year-old Malik Faisal Akram. He knocked on a glass door and Cytron-Walker thought that the man needed shelter, so the rabbi let the man inside. The rabbi said that he then made the man tea and didn’t find anything initially suspicious, as reported by CNN. 

During the Sabbath service prayers, the only time that the rabbi had his back turned, he heard a click come from behind him. “It turned out that it was his gun,” Cytron-Walker told CBS. He had taken a security course that course on this specific type of situation, which taught him that he needed to get himself and the others to safety. During the hostage negotiations, there was a point where Akram wasn’t getting what he wanted, and the rabbi said, “It didn’t look good. It didn’t sound good. We were terrified”. It was at this point that the rabbi decided to take a chance to try and escape.

“When I saw an opportunity where he wasn’t in a good position, I made sure the two gentlemen who were still with me that they were ready to go. The exit wasn’t too far away. I told them to go. I threw a chair at the gunman and I headed for the door, and all three of us were able to get out without even a shot being fired”, the rabbi said. An FBI team killed Akram after the hostages were released, which was around 9 p.m. or 10 p.m. Eastern Time. 

A video from WFAA showed a police vehicle outside the synagogue when two people burst through the door, followed by another person. A fourth figure, who was identified as Akram, then stepped out of the doorway with his arm extended as if holding a gun. Four gunshots followed by a loud explosion can be heard and seen during the video. 15 seconds later, several more gunshots are heard. The rabbi also said that he understands that it will take time for the members of the Congregation Beth Israel to heal from this incident. 

 This isn’t the first incident of attacks on Jewish people this year, and it won’t be the last. Attacks on Jewish people are rising, as warned by the Anti-Defamation League. While a majority of these anti-Semitic incidents involve harassment and vandalism, there have been assaults, and at least six occasions have turned fatal. Officials from the FBI warned that faith-based communities will most likely remain targets for violence. They warned such communities to evaluate security posture for mass gathering events and at places of worship. 

Deputy Director Paul Abbate and John Cohen, the top intelligence official at the Department of Homeland Security wrote in a letter that, “Faith-based communities have and will likely continue to be targets of violence by domestic violent extremists and those inspired by foreign terrorists.” The letter also said that the hostage incident seemed to be “an isolated incident.” There aren’t any other specific or credible threats associated with the standoff, but the FBI will continue to monitor all people reporting to ensure that this incident won’t be a catalyst for similar attacks. NPR reports that at least 1 in 4 American Jews experience Antisemitism.