A suspected attacker is dead after a vehicle rammed into a synagogue in West Bloomfield, Michigan, a local sheriff says
The suspect's vehicle "was travelling with purpose down the hall of the building" before they were apprehended
Emergency vehicles clogged roads around Temple Israel and aerial video showed smoke rising from the synagogue
There are no apparent injuries to staff or children at the attached preschool, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard says, but a security guard was injured
Police have encouraged local residents to shelter in place, with the Oakland County Sheriff's Department saying they are clearing the building. Nearby schools have been placed on lockdown
Police responded to reports of an "active shooter" at approximately 12:30 local time (16:30 GMT)
This is a developing story, and we're working to bring you more details
Sheriff: Synagogue suspect dead, security guard injured
We're now waiting on the next update from the Oakland County Sheriff, who is set to give another news conference on the Temple Israel incident.
We will bring you any information we learn from him here.
Henry Ford Health Center, a hospital in West Bloomfield, says it and two other hospitals are treating eight first responders from this afternoon's attack at Temple Israel.
Police have said a security guard who was hit by the vehicle was in hospital but was expected to recover.
"Our hearts go out to the community at Temple Israel and anyone who is impacted by this this frightening event. There is absolutely no place for violence in our community," the hospital says.
Image source, EPATemple Israel confirms that all students and personnel are safe, in a statement posted online - the synagogue's first public communication since the attack.
"All 140 students in our Susan and Harold Loss Early Childhood Center, our amazing staff, our courageous teachers, and our heroic security personnel are all accounted for and safe," the statement says.
It continues: "As you have no doubt heard, Temple Israel was the victim of a terrorist gunman who was confronted and neutralized by our security personnel who are truly heroes. Our teachers followed their training and kept the children safe and calm."
Authorities have not yet confirmed anything about today's suspect - including any potential motivations or the presence of any weapons.
Temple Israel's statement praises its security staff, local law enforcement, and a nearby country club who "welcomed us, fed us, and sheltered our staff, teachers, children, and parents".
"This note is coming to you before we know anything about our future programming or services, or any investigation. We wanted you to know we are safe, and we love you all," the statement says.
Image source, ReutersUS President Donald Trump has briefly commented on the attack in Michigan while speaking at an unrelated event at the White House.
"We want to send our love to the Michigan Jewish community and all the people in the Detroit area following the attack on the Jewish synagogue," he says, adding that he's been fully briefed on the situation.
The president calls the incident a "terrible thing" and adds, "we're going to get right down to the bottom of it".
"It's absolutely incredible that things like this happen," he says.
Officials in New York City and Los Angeles say they are bulking up police presence around Jewish synagogues, schools and cultural centres after the incident in Michigan.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani called the apparent attack "horrifying" and an "act of antisemitic violence".
"Out of an abundance of caution, the NYPD will continue to deploy high-visibility patrols to Jewish religious and cultural institutions across the five boroughs," he wrote on X.
Police in both Washington DC and Los Angeles shared similar messages, saying that there are no known threats to their cities at this time, but that security will increase out of an abundance of caution.
"The Department has increased visible patrols around houses of worship and associated schools, as well as cultural centers across the City," the LAPD said in a statement.
Image source, Getty ImagesOren Segal
Jewish communities all over the US have been on "high alert", says Oren Segal, a senior vice president at the Anti-Defamation League, an organisation dedicated to combating antisemitism.
"This is not something that just happened today in terms of law enforcement being on high alert," Segal tells CNN.
There has been an increased police presence around Jewish institutions for some time now, he said, and it increased around the start of the US and Israel's war with Iran.
While he acknowledges that he doesn't know what caused the attack, he says antisemitism is rising after the war started.
"Many in the Jewish community are thinking: is this connected to the conflict overseas?" he said.
Madeline Halpert
US Reporter
Lisa Stern, a member of the temple, went to the congregation this afternoon after she heard the news about the vehicle ramming.
A member of the temple for over 20 years, she has several friends who were working inside the building today, including rabbis and a social worker. But she chose not to text them to see if they were alright, worried that the pinging of their phones could be dangerous in the event of a shooting.
Waiting across the street, Stern says she saw anxious parents and grandparents arriving to make sure their children at the preschool were safe. The students were quickly evacuated and no one was harmed, police said.
"At first, when they didn't know, the parents were like falling to the ground," she says. "Thankfully it was minutes until they said the kids were safe."
Stern says it seems like the suspect had knowledge about the temple, which she says is set far back and not visible from the road.
"They obviously knew where they were going because they knew where to do maximum damage," she says.
Image source, Jeff Kowalsky/ AFP via Getty ImagesThis photo shows the police response to the incident at the Michigan synagogue.
The white truck in the centre of the image is the sheriff's local command centre, and the black truck to the left of frame is the police command centre.
Yellow school buses are surrounded by police vehicles.
You can also see several officers wearing tactical gear and holding rifles.
Image source, AFP via Getty ImagesSheriff Bouchard says it is "hard to say" how fast the suspect's vehicle was moving after it rammed into the synagogue and drove down a hallway.
The sheriff says video he has seen shows the suspect "was travelling with purpose down the hall".
He says in the weeks leading up today's incident, local law enforcement officials had been in constant communication with religious institutions and schools in the area.
He says police had "communicated with their head of security weeks ago," referring to the temple's security team.
"There was no specific chatter about any institution or facility in Oakland county but they were all on alert."
Image source, AFP via Getty ImagesShelter in place advisories are still in effect until police clear the area and make sure there are no explosives, the sheriff says.
But he reiterates that he does not believe there's an active threat at this time.
Another press briefing is expected in about two hours.
More now from Oakland County Michigan Sheriff Michael Bouchard, who says the suspect rammed a vehicle into the synagogue, injuring and knocking unconscious one security guard.
The suspect drove his vehicle through the doors of the synagogue and then down a hallway, and his vehicle caught fire.
Another guard engaged the suspect in gunfire.
There are no other victims or injuries, and the shooter is dead, the sheriff says. He does not confirm how the suspect died.
Police are clearing the area and checking for explosives now, but there is no active threat to the community, the sheriff says.
"We want people to take a breath," the sheriff said. "No one was hurt... everything that was supposed to happen happened."
Image source, Getty Images
Image source, US PoolOakland County Michigan Sheriff Michael Bouchard
The sheriff is giving an update on the incident. He says the suspect is deceased.
We will bring you more updates shortly.
Jewish congregations in Michigan are on edge after the incident at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, with one congregation in Ann Arbor, Michigan, saying in an email to members that they are "deeply upset about the shooting".
"We are still assessing the situation, but we are already taking extra security precautions," the temple said, adding they were in touch with local police for security measures.
The suspect involved in the attack at the synagogue in Michigan is dead, law enforcement sources tell the BBC's US partner, CBS News.
It comes after multiple other US media outlets reported that the suspect is dead.
Police have not yet publicly commented.
The shooting took place in the township of West Bloomfield, which is located in the US state of Michigan. It's less than a half an hour drive from the city of Detroit.
The town has a population of just over 66,000.
The suburbs surrounding Michigan's largest city of Detroit are home to a large Jewish population. About 71,000 Jewish people reside in Metro Detroit, according to the most recent survey from the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit, comprising the vast majority of Michigan's Jewish population.
And Temple Israel - the first synagogue in Metro Detroit founded in 1941 - is the largest reform synagogue in the US, according to the congregation's website. It has about 3,500 families who are members, or about 12,000 congregants.
If you're just joining us, here's what we know:
We'll bring you more details as they unfold.
We're now getting some pictures from Temple Israel, a synagogue and school in Michigan, where police have responded to a shooting incident.
Image source, CBS News
Image source, CBS
Image source, US Pool
Image source, US PoolMichigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has released a statement on the shooting, saying she is tracking reports of the incident and is working with state police to get more information.
"This is heartbreaking. Michigan's Jewish community should be able to live and practice their faith in peace," she says.
"Antisemitism and violence have no place in Michigan. I am hoping for everyone's safety."
Image source, ReutersMore now from Sheriff Bouchard's update.
He says the suspect approached a security guard, who then engaged them.
Bouchard confirms that shots were fired and a vehicle was involved. He did not give further details on the vehicle.
He adds that everyone has been moved out of the neighbouring school and daycare - and all Jewish facilities in the area will have increased police presence.
"It's a work in progress," he says, regarding the search for the suspect, and people in the area should continue to shelter in place until their area is cleared.
Image source, US PoolFBI Director Kash Patel says federal officers from the Detroit office are at the scene.
He says they are working with "partners in Michigan and responding to the apparent vehicle ramming and active shooter situation out of Temple Israel Synagogue in West Bloomfield Township, Michigan".
