Man is arrested after firing a gun near the Albany Synagogue

A man fired a shotgun on the grounds of a synagogue in Albany, New York, on Thursday afternoon and said “liberate Palestine,” police said, sending the building into lockdown and launching a hate crimes investigation hours before the start of Hanukkah.

No one was injured and a suspect was quickly arrested nearby.

Albany Police Chief Eric Hawkins said authorities were investigating the shooting, which happened around 2 p.m. at Temple Israel in the state capital, as a hate crime.

Temple Israel is a Conservative synagogue on the west side of Albany that also houses an early childhood center. Both children and teachers went into lockdown after the sound of gunshots, authorities said. The synagogue was also the subject of a bomb threat in September.

The suspect, a 28-year-old man, fled on foot carrying a shotgun, but was quickly apprehended, according to police.

According to the police, it is not yet clear whether the man aimed at the synagogue or shot into the air.

The shooting has prompted investigations by state and local police, as well as the FBI

New York Governor Kathy Hochul said she had ordered state police to be on high alert during Hanukkah, which begins Thursday evening.

“Any act of anti-Semitism is unacceptable, and undermining public safety in a synagogue on the first night of Hanukkah is even more deplorable,” Ms. Hochul said in a statement. “Make no mistake: the safety of Jewish New Yorkers is non-negotiable.”