Synagogue Attacker’s Brother Was Hezbollah Commander, Israel Claims

The brother of a Lebanese immigrant who allegedly attacked a Michigan synagogue was a commander in the radical Islamic terrorist group Hezbollah, Israeli authorities said Sunday.

Ayman Mohamed Ghazali committed suicide after engaging in a firefight with security guards at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Mich., in a thwarted attack. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF), in a Sunday post on X, identified Ghazali’s brother as being in charge of a unit responsible for some of the rockets fired into Israel by the Iranian-backed terrorist organization.

“Hezbollah commander Ibrahim Muhammad Ghazali was responsible for managing weapons operations within a specialized branch of the Badr Unit,” the IDF said. “The unit is responsible for launching hundreds of rockets toward Israeli civilians throughout the war. His brother, Ayman Muhammad Ghazali, carried out the terror attack in Michigan this past Thursday. Ibrahim was eliminated in an IAF strike on a Hezbollah military structure last week.”

While no staff or children were hurt in Thursday’s attack, the Michigan synagogue’s security director, Danny Phillips, a 28-year veteran of the Bloomfield Hills Police Department, was injured in the attack, according to the New York Post. Local authorities also said 30 law enforcement officers were treated for smoke inhalation after taking part in search and rescue efforts.