it didn t look good, it didn t sound good. we were very. we were terrified. and when i saw an opportunity where he wasn t in a good position, i made sure that the two gentlemen who were still with me, that they were ready to go. the exit wasn t too far away. i told them to go, i threw a chair at the gunman, and i headed for the door. and all three of us were able to get out without even a shot being fired. akram, who arrived in the united states two weeks ago, was heard ranting about religion and demanding the release of a pakistani neuroscientist with suspected links to al-qaeda currently serving a prison sentence in texas. people came here, a place of worship, to pray. but once again in america, a moment of peace became
december 29th. rabbi charlie cytron-walker said he didn t notice anything suspicion until he heard a click during one of the prayers and turned to see a gun. he spoke to cbs. it was terrifying it was overwhelming. reporter: stacy silverman was watching the live stream on her computer. we heard this man ranting for three hours. reporter: a tense 11-hour standoff followed fbi negotiators establishing contact early. akram s only request, the release of a federal prisoner once known as lady al-qaeda who in 2010 was convicted of attempted murder of u.s. military about seven hours into the standoff, akram released one hostage but as time went by, the rabbi said he only became more agitated, leaving the temple leader to rely on prior training for an active shooter. i threw a chair at the gunman, and i headed for the door and all three of us were able to get out. without even a shot being fired. reporter: the suspect died after the fbi moved in
i could read it but i think it s best heard from the rabbi himself. watch. the last hour or so of the standoff, he wasn t getting what he wanted. it didn t look good. it didn t sound good. we were terrified. when i saw an opportunity, where he wasn t in a good position, i made sure the two gentlemen who were still with me, that they were ready to go. the exit wasn t too far away. i told them to go, i threw a chair at the gunman and i headed for the door. all three of us were able to get out without a shot being fired. joining us now is george and salima, senior vice president
, quote, act of terror. this morning we re learning more about the nearly 11-hour hostage standoff at a texas synagogue this weekend. earlier on cbs, the rabbi at the congregation talked about the final moments of that terrifying experience. we were terrified. i threw a chair at the gunman. and i headed for the door. and all three of us were able to get out without even a shot being fired. nbc s morgan chesky is outside that synagogue, just outside dallas. morgan, what do authorities know at this point about the hostage taker s motive, or do they? reporter: yeah. that is a very good question that they are actively looking
that she s always said and i m sure maintains she does not support it, she does not support violence. the suspect in the hostage situation came to the u.s. legally in december. akram s brother told nbc news akram was, quote, suffering from mental health issues. this morning rabbi charlie cytron-walker described how all four hostages escaped unharmed. i asked to make sure that the two gentlemen still with me, that they were ready to go. the exit wasn t too far away. i told them to go. i threw a chair at the gunman. and i headed for the door. and all three of us were able to get out without even a shot being fired. joining me now is nbc news correspondent sam brock from colleyville, texas, and nbc news investigations correspondent tom winter. tom, i want to begin with you. this man was not an american