By Chantal Da Silva -
NBC News
UK counterterrorism police on Thursday detained two men for questioning as part of an ongoing investigation into a hostage-taking at a Texas synagogue.
The arrests come nearly a week after a British man held four people captive during an 11-hour ordeal at a suburban Fort Worth synagogue.
Greater Manchester Police said the two men were arrested early this morning in Birmingham, about 74 miles (120 kilometers) northwest of London, and in Manchester, about 53 miles (86 kilometers) further north.
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The department said the two men had been in custody for questioning since 3 am ET Thursday.
They have not been charged.
“North West Counter Terrorism Police officers continue to support US authorities in their investigation into the events in Texas,” Greater Manchester Police said in a statement.
Malik Faisal Akram at a religious day care center in Dallas, Texas on January 2, 2022.OURCALLING, LLC.
/ via REUTERS
It is not clear how the two men could be connected to Saturday's confrontation between authorities and Malik Faisal Akram, 44, at Congregation Beth Israel, a Reform synagogue in the city of Colleyville.
The incident culminated in the hostages escaping before Akram, originally from Lancashire in northwest England, was shot dead by federal agents.
[Authorities identify man who took four hostages at a Texas synagogue]
The FBI has said Akram is believed to have acted alone.
During the long-running hostage situation, Akram demanded the release of Aafia Siddiqui, according to three senior law enforcement officials briefed on the situation.
Akram was ultimately shot by the FBI hostage rescue team, according to a senior law enforcement official.
Siddiqui, 49, was convicted by a federal jury in 2010 of attempting to kill US officers in Afghanistan and has been held at FMC Carswell, a federal prison in Fort Worth.
His sentence was complemented by an increased sentence for terrorism.
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Akram was known to UK intelligence services, a British security source told our sister network NBC News.
He was investigated for possible terrorist links, but the case was closed the moment he traveled to the United States because he did not meet the threshold for further investigation, according to the source.
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On Sunday, British authorities arrested two teenagers in connection with the incident, and a senior law enforcement official told NBC News that the teenagers were Akram's sons.
Both had been detained for questioning but were released without charge, according to British authorities.
The official noted that Akram had been in contact with his children at some point during Saturday's event.
Police have not revealed the identity of the two teens arrested.
The FBI has continued to investigate the incident as a "terrorism-related matter, in which the Jewish community was the target."
