Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said she is “heartbroken” after an attack on a Michigan synagogue on Thursday afternoon.
Police responded to a report of an active shooter at Temple Israel, a synagogue in West Bloomfield, Michigan. Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said that the gunman approached a security guard, who then engaged them. Shots were fired, and a vehicle was involved.
“Michigan’s Jewish community should be able to live and practice their faith in peace,” Whitmer said. “Antisemitism and violence have no place in Michigan. I am hoping for everyone’s safety.”
— Governor Gretchen Whitmer (@GovWhitmer) March 12, 2026
FBI Director Kash Patel announced on Thursday afternoon that FBI personnel are on the scene. As of publication, no injuries had been reported. The shooter, who had not been publicly identified, is believed to be dead.
Temple Israel has over 12,000 members and a preschool. Local schools and houses were urged to shelter in place. Television footage shortly after 2 p.m. ET showed parents and children walking back into the building.
The attack comes amid growing antisemitism in the United States. Democratic and socialist politicians — most notably New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar, and Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib — have been accused of enabling antisemitism in their respective areas by failing to denounce hate speech involving Jewish citizens in their communities.
Omar and Tlaib, the first two Muslim women elected to Congress, have especially drawn backlash and accusations of anti-Jewish sentiments for repeated social media attacks on Israel. Tlaib, who was born in Detroit and has served in Congress since 2019, had not commented on the situation as of publication.
CNN: A massive police presence that we’re seeing there in Bloomfield Hills. Local police have responded to reports of shots being fired and a car being driven into Temple Israel pic.twitter.com/kyBOWRsJPE
— Acyn (@Acyn) March 12, 2026
Mamdani has faced continued criticism after sharing a picture of himself having dinner with Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian activist who previously justified the Oct. 7 attacks. Nationally syndicated radio host Clay Travis and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz ripped Mamdani after he posted the picture earlier this week.
“Posting a celebratory photo of an anti-Israel college protester who should be deported next to your ‘non public figure’ wife, who cheered the rape and murder of Jews on 10/7, the day after two radical Muslims threw pipe bombs on your sidewalk is a hell of a choice, Mamdani,” Travis wrote.
Old Dominion University in Virginia also had an active shooter situation on Thursday morning. The gunman in that situation is dead, and two members of the university ROTC program were shot and injured. They were taken to a local hospital.
This story will be updated.
