The Texas synagogue hostage-taker was on the phone with his kids when he was shot dead, brother says

• US authorities killed a British man who took four people hostage at a Texas synagogue on Saturday.
• Malik Faisal Akram's brother said he was shot dead while he was on the phone with his children.

The man who took four people hostage at a Texas synagogue on Saturday was shot dead while he was on the phone with his children, his brother said.

Malik Faisal Akram, a British national, was killed after an hourslong standoff at a synagogue in Colleyville, Texas, and the hostages were safely released, law enforcement said. The FBI later designated the hostage situation a "terrorism-related matter."

His brother, Gulbar Akram, told Sky News that the two of them spoke on the phone during the siege, and that Malik was on the phone with his children when he was killed by authorities.

"Why did they have to kill him? They didn't need to do that," Gulbar said.

Gulbar told The New York Times that he was on the phone with his brother while he was "in the incident room with terrorism police," and that the call lasted around 10 minutes.

Gulbar told Sky News his brother never intended on killing anyone, was lying when he said he was armed, and that he had ultimately gone there to die.

He noted that his brother had asked for Aafia Siddiqui — a convicted terrorist often called "Lady Al Qaeda" — who is currently serving an 86-year sentence in a Texas federal prison.

Gulbar said his brother said: "I'll release these Jewish guys, I just want them to bring Aafia Siddiqui over here. I want them to bring her here and I'll release these guys."

Gulbar told Sky News: "I went into a shock, my mind was blown. I knew at that point — my brother has no chance."

"He was telling me 'I've come to die'."

"I tried to convince him, said think about your kids, your mum, and dad. But his mind was made up. He wanted her [Siddiqui] released," he said.

Gulbar also implied his brother should never have been able to come to the US.

Malik "should never have been able to get through immigration," Gulbar told Sky News. "Someone helped him. He shouldn't have been able to board a plane without any stringent checks."