All four hostages at a Texas synagogue were freed unharmed, police announced late Saturday, adding that suspected captor is dead.
Four people have been taken hostage in the small Texas town of Colleyville in which the suspect was apparently demanding the release of a convicted terrorist.
Colleyville police chief Michael Miller told a news conference that a "rescue team breached the synagogue" Saturday evening and rescued the three remaining hostages being held in a more than 10-hour standoff.
"The suspect is deceased," Miller told reporters.
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Moreover, FBI Dallas Special Agent Matt DeSarno affirmed that the four hostages -- who included a much-loved local rabbi, Charlie Cytron-Walker, were not in need of medical attention, adding that they would soon be reunited with their families.
"He did not harm them in any way," he said.
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Journalists at the scene reported about a loud explosion and gunshots at the synagogue shortly before the press conference.
ABC News reported that the hostage-taker was armed and had claimed to have bombs in unknown locations. That was not confirmed by police although Miller said that "bomb techs are clearing the scene."
Quoting a US official briefed on the matter, ABC reported the man was demanding the release of Aafia Siddiqui, who has been dubbed "Lady Qaeda" by US tabloids.
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DeSarno told the news conference the suspect had been identified but did not disclose his identity.
The FBI special agent did not confirm the suspect's motive, but said they were "focused on one issue that was not specifically threatening to the Jewish community."
ABC initially claimed that the man is Siddiqui's brother, but later clarified her brother is in Houston.
In the same vein, Aafia Siddiqui's lawyer asserted that she "has absolutely no involvement" in the hostage situation in a statement to CNN.
The lawyer confirmed that the man was not her brother, emphasizing that she condemned his actions.
Siddiqui, a former Pakistani scientist, was in 2010 sentenced by a New York court to 86 years in prison for attempted murder of US officers in Afghanistan.
She is currently being held at Federal Medical Center (FMC) prison in Fort Worth, Texas.
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