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Counter-terror police arrest two men after Texas synagogue attack

Martin Benham Home Affairs Editor

TWO men were arrested today by counter-terrorism police over suspected links to the Texas synagogue hostage taker Malik Faisal Akram as a dramatic audio recording emerged of him during the siege.

The two unnamed suspects were held in Birmingham and Manchester and taken into custody for questioning. No further details were given of the reasons for their arrest, although sources said there remained no sign of any ongoing plot.

The arrests came as audio, obtained by the Jewish Chronicle, emerged of Akram speaking to his brother Gulbar during the siege at the Congregation Beth Israel in the Dallas suburb of Colleyville.

During it, Akram, 44, who is rebuffing efforts by his brother to persuade him to surrender, is heard swearing and becoming increasingly agitated, before saying: “I have been praying to Allah for two years for this.”

Officials confirmed earlier this week that MI5 had investigated Akram in 2020 after receiving an “uncorroborated” tip off about him, but had found no evidence to indicate that he was a threat. An internal assessment over any opportunities to detect Akram will be conducted.

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2022-01-20T08:00:00.0000000Z

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