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Michigan synagogue attacker was inspired by Hezbollah, sought to kill as many Jewish people as possible: feds
Federal investigators said Monday that the man who crashed his pickup into a Michigan synagogue earlier this month was inspired and radicalized by Iran‑backed terrorist group Hezbollah and reportedly sought to kill as many Jewish people as he could.
Officials noted that Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, who attempted to launch a full-scale, mass-casualty assault on March 12, deliberately targeted a location filled with more than 100 children in West Bloomfield before he was fatally shot by officers. Local officials previously reported that the assault came after several of his family members were killed in Lebanon during the country’s war with Israel.
In the days leading up to the attack, Ghazali allegedly rigged his truck with booby traps, fireworks, explosives, and large amounts of gasoline. Just before ramming the building, he reportedly sat in the Temple Israel parking lot and sent videos to his sister in Lebanon — some showing him holding a weapon while listening to upbeat militant battle anthems.
“This is the largest gathering of Israelis in the state of Michigan in the United States. I have booby trapped the car. I will forcibly enter and start shooting them. God willing, I will kill as many of them as I possibly can,” he said in one of the videos, according to the FBI Detroit Special Agent in Charge Jennifer Runyon.
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James Gorgon, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan, added that had the attacker survived, he would have been charged with providing “material support” to Hezbollah for effectively providing himself as the weapon aimed at Michigan’s largest Jewish temple.
According to investigators, Ghazali reportedly consumed pro-Hezbollah and Iranian militant propaganda for months leading up to the attack, ultimately planning what he called a “special operation” aimed at causing mass casualties.
He allegedly created a Facebook album titled “Vengeance,” filled with images of Hezbollah leaders and militant quotes, and also sent his sister a photo of an Israeli flag covered up with yellow paint, a color often used to represent loyalty and sacrifice to Hezbollah.
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“You killed the Ali and Hussein of our time. We will avenge their blood,” one of his Facebook status posts said hours before the attack, referencing the overseas deaths of his family members.
“We will seek retribution for their sacred blood,” another post said. “Israel is a cancerous, malignant growth. Israel is pure evil and the oppressors will soon know what kind of end they will meet.”
Within three days prior to the attack, Ghazali researched local synagogues, targeting what he called “the largest gathering of Israelis in Michigan,” according to the officials. He reportedly purchased an AR-style rifle, 300 rounds of ammunition, and more than $2,200 worth of fireworks.
He filled collapsible containers with roughly 35 gallons of gasoline across multiple trips to use as an explosive accelerant in his truck, adding fireworks to booby-trap the vehicle before ramming it into the synagogue.
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Officials added that just minutes before launching the attack, Ghazali sat in the Temple Israel parking lot and sent his sister in Lebanon 19 videos, photos and messages affirming his commitment to a mass terrorist plan.
During the attack, the suspect ultimately exchanged gunfire with synagogue security and ignited the explosives inside his vehicle after ramming into the temple doors at a high speed.
While the assailant acted alone, officials emphasized that he methodically followed Hezbollah’s propaganda directives to carry out the violence.
“I’ve seen some odd attempts to explain away or even lessen this terrorist attack by claiming that he was an isolated lone wolf, but that is misleading,” Gorgon said. “Terrorist propaganda is designed to activate the so-called lone wolf to act on behalf of the terrorist organization.”
“I am convinced that my office would prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he committed the federal crime of providing material support to Hezbollah,” he added.
Officials noted that the attacker was not on any terrorist watch list and had never been the subject of an FBI investigation before the attack.
No evidence of co-conspirators or ongoing threats were found, investigators said.
“We stand firmly with our Jewish community. We remain unwavering in our commitment to protect them and all members of our community, from those who seek to do harm,” West Bloomfield Police Chief Dale Young said.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt slammed the minimal coverage the liberal networks have given to the murder of 18-year-old Loyola University student Sheridan Gorman.
Leavitt took a moment at Monday’s press briefing to highlight a recent study from the Media Research Center showing CBS News dedicating two minutes and one second of coverage towards Gorman’s murder while ABC News spent just one minute and 19 seconds and NBC News spent just 23 seconds total.
She tied the murder, allegedly committed by an illegal immigrant who was roaming the streets of Chicago after being released into the country by the Biden administration, to the ongoing showdown on Capitol Hill as Democrats continue to block DHS funding over its objections to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
“I think her life was worth more than 23 seconds on cable television,” Leavitt said. “And I think the people in this room have a responsibility to report on cases like this because it just exemplifies why the president believes so strongly in deporting illegal aliens from our communities.”
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Representatives for ABC News, CBS News and NBC News did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital‘s requests for comment.
While the three broadcast networks offered scarce attention to Gorman, the liberal cable networks turned a blind eye.
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MS NOW has not mentioned the slain college student once after her murder began gaining national attention, according to Grabien transcripts. CNN has also avoided the story with the exception of a guest, Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., who invoked Gorman’s murder during an interview and a separate instance where CNN aired live coverage of a separate White House briefing where Leavitt previously mentioned Gorman.
DHS confirmed that the suspect, Jose Medina-Medina, is “a Venezuelan criminal illegal alien” who was apprehended by the U.S. Border Patrol and released into the country under the Biden administration in 2023. Medina-Medina was released again one month later after being arrested for shoplifting.
The Chicago Police Department formally charged Medina-Medina with first-degree murder.
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Kid Rock came under fire by the US Army after the musician shared a clip of what appeared to be military helicopters hovering above his Nashville residence.
The “Cowboy” singer pumped his fist in the air as two helicopters idled outside his home in Tennessee, dubbed the “Southern White House.”
“I think they’re gonna be alright,” he told WKRN. “My buddy is commander in chief. I mean, what are they looking into? They stopped seconds … a minute?”
Rock, 55, explained that he regularly says “whats up” when the pilots are practicing in the area. “It was pretty cool they stopped right there,” he explained of Saturday’s maneuver. “I wasn’t expecting any of that, but I thought it was pretty neat.”
Rock, whose full name is Robert Ritchie, cheered as an Apache attack helicopter hovered by his pool, which featured a life-sized sculpture of the Statue of Liberty.
“This is a level of respect that s— for brains Governor of California will never know,” the musician captioned his video.
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“God Bless America and all those who have made the ultimate sacrifice to defend her.”
A spokesperson for Fort Campbell told local WKRN that an investigation has been launched into the flight at Kid Rock’s Whites Creek home.
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“Fort Campbell leadership is aware of a video circulating on social media depicting AH-64 Apache helicopters operating in the vicinity of a private residence associated with Mr. Robert Ritchie (also known as “Kid Rock”). The command has initiated an investigation to review the circumstances surrounding this activity,” said Maj. Jonathon Bless, 101st Airborne Division Public Affairs Officer.
“The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) and Fort Campbell maintain strict standards for aviation safety, professionalism, and adherence to established flight regulations. We take all concerns regarding aircraft operations and their impact on the surrounding community seriously.”
The AH-64 Apache helicopters reportedly flew over the No Kings protest in downtown Nashville earlier in the day.
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“These helicopters were flying a route in the Nashville vicinity for training purposes. Any association with the No Kings Rally also happening in Nashville that day is entirely coincidental,” said Bless.
Kid Rock is an outspoken supporter of President Donald Trump, backing him in all three of his presidential campaigns.
He performed his song “American Bad A–” at the 2024 Republican National Convention with altered lyrics to showcase his support for Trump.
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Jayapal floats reparations for illegal immigrants impacted by Trump crackdown, demands prosecutions
Amid President Donald Trump’s illegal immigration crackdown, one congressional Democrat is calling for reparations for foreign nationals who are affected.
“We are going to have some form of reparation for the kids and the families that have been traumatized through all of this,” Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., said Friday during a congressional hearing, referring to illegal immigrants. “You talked about how there’s no support for people even once they’re released. We need to make sure that we are funding that kind of work to continue to provide relief.”
Jayapal, the former chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), made the comments during the seventh installment of a hearing series titled “Kidnapped and Disappeared: Trump’s Attack on Children.”
The left-wing lawmaker said reparations for illegal immigrants affected by Trump’s crackdown efforts would be just one item in a series of reforms she would push Democrats to pursue if they retake House control in November.
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Jayapal, who was born in India and became a U.S. citizen in 2000, also said she wants “offensive action” regarding those who are carrying out Trump’s illegal immigration crackdown.
“We need real accountability, because at the end of the day, the people that have been inflicting this harm need to be prosecuted,” Jayapal said. “They need to be brought before us, and they need to be held to account for the trauma that they have created.”
A spokesperson for Jayapal did not respond to a Fox Digital inquiry about who specifically she wants to see prosecuted or who would be eligible for reparations.
Reparations refer to financial compensation for a specific group intended to address reputed economic harms. Many progressive Democrats have long advocated for reparations for the descendants of American slaves.
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Throughout the hearing, congressional Democrats repeatedly called attention to the children of deported illegal immigrants, while saying little about the victims of illegal immigrant crime.
The group of Democratic lawmakers did not discuss 18-year-old Sheridan Gorman, who was allegedly shot and killed by a Venezuelan national illegally living in the United States in Chicago earlier this month.
Jayapal’s comments came during the record-breaking Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that has continued to drag on with no end in sight.
She and nearly all House Democrats have refused to fund the department until the Trump administration agrees to various proposals that could rein in immigration enforcement.
“I have been clear since the start of the appropriations process: I will not vote to give Trump’s ICE or CBP another cent without major reforms,” Jayapal said Friday following her vote against a two-month DHS funding extension.
Though Democrats have been willing to fund the non-immigration parts of DHS, most Republicans have rejected that idea because it would effectively defund law enforcement.
Zeroing out appropriations for ICE and the Border Patrol would continue to force support staff employed by those agencies — have not received a full paycheck during the seven-week funding lapse — to keep working without pay.
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