Ghazali, who was 41, drove “with purpose” down a corridor until his vehicle became stuck, at which point he exchanged gunfire with security guards. The FBI said Ghazali died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound during a gunfight with police.
The nursery Inside Temple Israel Synagogue after the attack (Image: Emily Elconin)[Missing Credit]
The photographer commissioned to take photos of the shul following the attack was Emily Elconin, a Jewish freelance photojournalist. She grew up in West Bloomfield, Michigan, around three miles from Temple Israel, which in turn is located very near to Temple Shir Shalom, the shul she attended.
“It was very hard to stomach being there, taking the images,” Elconin said in an interview with the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. “And all I could hope was that it would come through in the images themselves.”
Her photos show the hallway which the attacker drove down in a Ford F-150, which is covered in ash, with charred shrapnel on the floor, damaged fittings, and photos on the wall burnt beyond recognition.
“When you’re standing inside of there, you get the full understanding of what happened, where the car drove through, where the car stopped, where the car exploded, seeing the bullet holes on the windows”, Elconin said. “I think that it will probably take me a while to fully process the scope.”
She also captured the very moment that the attack began, with activities interrupted and left “frozen in time”.
Nursery tables inside Temple Israel Synagogue after the attack (Image: Emily Elconin)[Missing Credit]
“Someone was warming up their soup, and there’s, you know, a napkin over the soup,” she said. “And then there’s all the food from the kids, like a yogurt with a straw in it still.”
One of her photos features a piece of classroom artwork with the words “overflow with love”, which is covered in ash.
“When you see all the toys and everything, and all the shoes and things flipped over, you kind of are transported back to the scene when this was happening,” Elconin continued. “Where the car came through, on the right side is directly where the preschool classrooms are. So that’s instantly where the car drove by.”
Inside Temple Israel Synagogue after the attack (Image: Emily Elconin)[Missing Credit]
Much of the damage was caused by the car, which was “burned all the way through, down to the bottom”, and then subsequently because the temple’s water system activated in response, leaving all the floors “sopping wet”.
“There is damage pretty much everywhere,” Elconin said.
As a photojournalist, her aim was to allow people seeing her photos to comprehend not only the extent of destruction, but also the emotions felt by the 106 children, the teachers, and the other staff caught up in the attack.
The childcare centre inside Temple Israel Synagogue after the attack (Image: Emily Elconin)[Missing Credit]
“I just really wanted to convey to people what it felt like for these people, these kids, teachers, to be in there in those moments: the food left untouched, art projects left unfinished, the chairs flipped over,” she said.
Elconin was well aware of the significance of her task, which she was asked to do by Rabbi Jen Lader of Temple Israel.
“I knew the importance of having this documented,” she said. “As horrible as the destruction is, and how sickening these images are, it’s very important for people to see what happened and to just have a better understanding of the destruction.
“It could have been any of us, any of our synagogues. And I think it’s just a very real reality for Jewish communities.”
Burnt photos inside Temple Israel Synagogue after the attack (Image: Emily Elconin)[Missing Credit]
Temple Israel is now appealing for donations that will go towards their community – including the injured security guard, who is recovering – and the repairs to the building.
Its website says: “Temple Israel was targeted. Our people were ready. They protected our children with courage, training, and extraordinary strength.”
To donate to Temple Israel’s rebuilding efforts, click here.
