Police stand in front of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue, Jan. 16, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Greater Manchester Police in England say they are questioning two more people in the investigation into the hostage-taking and standoff at a Colleyville temple.
Early Wednesday morning the GMP tweeted officers from a counter-terrorism unit working on the investigation with US law enforcement said two men were being detained for questioning.
"We continue to work closely with colleagues from other forces," GMP said on Twitter. "Communities defeat terrorism, and the help and support we get from the public is a vital part of that."
No information about the two men has been released.
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The FBI identified the Congregation Beth Israel hostage-taker as 44-year-old Malik Faisal Akram, a British citizen. The FBI has called the Jan. 15 incident “a terrorism-related matter” targeting the Jewish community and previously said it appeared Akram acted alone. The investigation into the incident is ongoing.
This is not the first time British counterterrorism police have detained people for questioning related to the Texas standoff.
On Jan. 16, British police said they were questioning two teenagers in Manchester in connection with the investigation. A senior U.S. law enforcement official told NBC News at that time that the teens were Akram's sons, who were believed to have been in touch with their father during the standoff. The teens were later released.
Standoff at Congregation Beth Israel
Akram's family released a statement to our partners at Sky News in the United Kingdom saying, "We are absolutely devastated as a family" and "…do not condone any of his actions…" The statement went on to say Akram, "was suffering from mental health issues."
Two others were questioned in the UK on Jan. 20, but no details were released publicly. It's not clear if those men, who were from Birmingham and Manchester, have been released.
British police do not release names and details of detainees unless they are charged.
British media, including the Guardian and the BBC, have reported that Akram was investigated by the domestic intelligence service MI5 as a possible “terrorist threat” in 2020, but authorities concluded he posed no danger, and the investigation was closed.
The White House said Tuesday that Akram had been checked against U.S. law enforcement databases before entering the country but raised no red flags.
