One hostage has been released from a Texas synagogue on Saturday amid an ongoing standoff between police and a man who had been holding four people.
Colleyville, Texas police said the uninjured man was released just after 5 p.m. Saturday.
The FBI’s Dallas field office and the Texas Department of Public Safety remain on the scene to assist local police to negotiate the ongoing hostage situation at the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue near Fort Worth.
At least four hostages were reportedly being held in the synagogue, including Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker, when police responded at around 11 a.m.
The hostage-taker was heard demanding the release of Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani neuroscientist with suspected ties to al-Qaeda who was sentenced to prison in 2010 for assaulting U.S. military personnel while in custody in Afghanistan. Officials told the Associated Press that the hostage-taker asked to speak with Siddiqui.
Siddiqui is being held in federal prison in Texas.
FBI Dallas spokeswoman Katie Chaumont said crisis negotiators were in communication with someone inside the synagogue.
Ms. Chaumont said Saturday afternoon that no injuries had been reported.
“It’s an evolving situation, and we have a lot of law enforcement personnel on scene,” Chaumont said told the Associated Press.
Services at the synagogue were being live-streamed on Facebook. An angry man was heard ranting shortly before 2 p.m., when the live stream cut out, The Fort Worth Star Telegram-Reported.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said he is monitoring the situation through the Texas Department of Public Safety.
“They are working with local and federal teams to achieve the best and safest outcome,” he wrote on Twitter.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said President Biden has been briefed on the hostage situation and is receiving updates from his national security team.
Mr. Biden is spending the holiday weekend at his home in Wilmington, Delaware, where he attended Saturday evening mass.
The White House is referring questions to local law enforcement.
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said he is monitoring the situation.
“We pray for the safety of the hostages and rescuers,” he wrote on Twitter.
Israel’s Consul General in Houston, Livia Link-Raviv, is en route to the scene, according to Israel’s Foreign Minister, Yair Lapid.
“We are closely monitoring the hostage situation and are in close contact with American law enforcement agencies,” Mr. Lapid said on Twitter.
