A hostage-taking in a synagogue on Saturday kept a city in the American state of Texas in suspense.

After hours of negotiations with the hostage-taker, special forces broke into the synagogue on Saturday evening (local time) and freed the hostages, according to police in the city of Colleyville near Dallas.

The hostage-taker died.

Exactly how, the police left open.

The authorities also kept a low profile on the background to the crime.

American media reported, citing investigators, that the kidnappers wanted to free a prisoner with suspected links to the Al Qaeda terrorist group.

The man took four hostages during a service in the synagogue in the city of 26,000 on Saturday morning and holed himself up with them in the building for hours.

Among them was the rabbi.

Church service streamed

The service was streamed live on the church's Facebook page.

The local newspaper, the Fort Worth Star Telegram, reported that the voice of an angry man could be heard in the live stream, ranting and cursing and talking about religion, among other things.

He said several times that he didn't want to hurt anyone and that he believed he was going to die.

At some point the transmission stopped.

The police arrived with a large contingent of around 200 officers, including special units specializing in hostage-taking.

Specialists from the Federal Police FBI kept in touch with the hostage-taker throughout the day and negotiated with him.

The situation was unclear for a long time.

The first all-clear came early in the evening: a male hostage was released – unharmed.

A few hours later, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott tweeted that all the hostages were free and safe.

FBI official Matt DeSarno said all four hostages were safe and unharmed.

The hostage-taker has been identified.

In view of the ongoing investigation, the police could not provide any further information about him.

Extensive investigations into his motive and possible contacts are underway.

"Our investigations will have global reach," DeSarno said.

According to reports, hostage-takers are British

The hostage-taker was British, according to reports from the PA news agency and other British media.

A spokesman for the UK Foreign Office told the agency on Sunday it was aware of the death of a British man in Texas and was in contact with local authorities.

DeSarno said the hostage-taker was known to be focused on an issue not specific to the Jewish community.

Colleyville Police Chief Michael Miller said it was not yet clear why the man targeted the local synagogue.

Several US media, including the Washington Post and broadcaster CNN, reported, citing investigators, that the man wanted to secure the release of Pakistani scientist Aafia Siddiqui from a nearby prison in Texas.

Siddiqui was arrested in Ghasni, Afghanistan, in July 2008 and sentenced by a US federal judge to 86 years in prison in 2010 for an attack on US soldiers in Afghanistan.

During interrogation at a police station, she took a gun lying on the ground and aimed it at an American soldier and a translator, without hitting them.

Siddiqui was previously educated at one of the top universities in the US, MIT in Cambridge.

Later, American authorities added her name to a list of suspects linked to al-Qaeda terrorists.

Bennett is relieved to be freed

The police did not comment on the motive of the perpetrator in Texas.

Initially, it also remained unclear how the scene of the hostage rescue took place, how the hostage-taker was armed and whether he was killed by officials or possibly took his own life.

US President Joe Biden said in a written statement: "In the coming days we will learn more about the motivations of the hostage-taker." He emphasized that anyone who wants to spread hate should know: "We will stand against anti-Semitism and against the increase in extremism in this country.”

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett tweeted his relief and gratitude after the hostages were freed.

"This incident made it clear to us that anti-Semitism is still alive and that we must continue to fight it worldwide."

Authorities in other American cities, including New York and Los Angeles, said they had initially increased their presence at synagogues and Jewish institutions in light of the hostage-taking.