‘Stay Away If You Know What’s Good for You’: Jewish Trainer’s Warning (to Jihadists) as Detroit Jews Embrace Firearms: Interview With Aaron Tobin - Alan Skorski Reports

An armed private security guard at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, MI. shot and killed an attacker who rammed his vehicle into the synagogue and opened fire, preventing what could have been a mass casualty event last week, authorities and witnesses said. The incident, which occurred Thursday, March 12, left the attacker dead and one security guard injured, but no congregants, staff or the 140 children attending the synagogue’s early childhood learning center were harmed. The attacker, identified by federal authorities as Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, 41, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Lebanon and resident of Dearborn Heights, drove a Ford F-150 through the building’s doors around 12:30 p.m., entered a hallway and began firing through his windshield, according to Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard and FBI officials. Security personnel, including the synagogue’s in-house armed team, engaged the suspect. Ghazali was fatally shot during the exchange; some reports indicate he may have inflicted a self-inflicted wound as well. The vehicle caught fire, filling the area with smoke. Temple Israel credited its enhanced security measures — implemented last June in response to rising antisemitism and threats to Jewish institutions — with averting disaster. The synagogue hired Danny Phillips, a former police lieutenant with 28 years of experience, including as an advanced firearms instructor, to lead its armed security team. “In response to the evolving realities facing Jewish communities,” the temple said at the time of Phillips’ hiring, it took proactive steps to protect members. In an interview following the attack, Jewish firearms instructor Aaron Tobin told journalist Alan Skorski that beefed-up security and armed response were key to stopping the assault. Tobin, who trains members of the Jewish community in the Detroit metro area, said Jews across the region are increasingly arming themselves and seeking proper firearms training amid heightened threats. “Jews across Detroit’s Metro area are getting armed and trained in proper gun use,” Tobin said. He issued a stark warning to potential attackers from Dearborn, a city with a large Arab American population: “Stay away from the Jewish community if they know what’s good for them.” The FBI is leading the investigation into the incident, which Special Agent in Charge Jennifer Runyan described as “a targeted act of violence against the Jewish community.” Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer condemned the attack as “hate, plain and simple,” and expressed relief that swift action by security prevented further harm. Temple Israel, one of the largest Reform synagogues in the U.S. with over 12,000 members, has been a focal point for the local Jewish community. No additional injuries beyond the security guard were reported, though some first responders were treated for smoke inhalation. Subscribe to Alan Skorski Reports: www.youtube.com/@AlanSkorskiReports Alan Skorski Reports 26MAR2026 - PODCAST