The FBI and Homeland Security are warning that faith-based communities likely will remain targets of violence.
In a letter obtained by CNN, FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate and John Cohen, the top intelligence official at DHS, urged state and local officials to review their security protocols for mass gatherings and houses of worship.
"Faith-based communities have been, and will likely continue to be, targets of violence by both domestic violent extremists and those inspired by foreign terrorists," the two officials said in the letter.
The Monday letter came after Faisal Akram, a British citizen, on Saturday held Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker and three other people hostage at a synagogue near Fort Worth, Texas for 11 hours before FBI agents shot and killed Akram, who was armed with a gun.
A new Newsmax Platinum report found that the Islamist gunman at Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas, belonged to a Pakistan-based Islamic extremist group called Tablighi Jamaat.
In the letter, the two officials cautioned the Saturday hostage-taking appears to be an isolated incident.”
"We will continue to monitor all reporting to ensure this incident is not a catalyst for similar attacks," they wrote.
"Foreign influence actors have also promoted narratives online intended to sow discord in the U.S. and foreign terrorist groups continue to encourage followers to conduct attacks and use social media to incite violence," the letter notes.
Jewish congregations and organizations across the country are stepping up security measures and having hard conversations about how to stay safe as a result of the Saturday attack, CNN reported.
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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