Washington DC - The FBI said on Monday that a car-ramming attack at a Michigan synagogue earlier this month was an act of terrorism inspired by Hezbollah.

"Based on the evidence gathered to date, we assess this attack to be a Hezbollah-inspired act of terrorism purposely targeting the Jewish community and the largest Jewish temple in Michigan," Jennifer Runyan, the FBI special agent in charge for Detroit, told a press briefing.

The attack at the Temple Israel synagogue on March 12 saw a security guard injured and several law enforcement officers treated for smoke inhalation.

No children or staff at the place of worship were injured when a driver smashed a pickup truck through the doors, causing a blaze and triggering a huge police response.

Justice Bank of America agrees to pay $72.5 mn settlement in Epstein sex-trafficking suit alleging complicity

The Lebanese-born attacker, identified as 41-year-old Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, died by self-inflicted gunshot.

The attack came amid heightened security across the US following the launch of a US-Israeli war on Iran, a conflict that has since broadened to the Middle East.

A neighbor told the Detroit Free Press newspaper that Ghazali had "recently lost family in an Israeli strike in Lebanon."

One source in Michigan's Lebanese American community also told CBS News the strike occurred "roughly 10 days prior" and "killed several of his family members, leaving him devastated."