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A gunman has reportedly taken several people hostage at a synagogue in Texas, and his demands are simple ... free his sister, who was once suspected of terrorist activities.

According to ABC's Aaron Katersky, the armed man who wandered into the Congregation Beth Israel Synagogue in Colleyville Saturday has allegedly been ID'd as Muhammad Siddiqui, whom he says is claiming to be the brother of convicted felon Aafia Siddiqui.

She was sent to prison in 2010 after being found guilty of attempted murder of a U.S. military officer in Afghanistan -- among a slew of other charges -- and is serving out an 86-year sentence in the Fort Worth area. She's alleged to have had ties with al-Qaeda over the years ... and has been placed on federal law enforcement terrorism watch lists in the past.

Per Katersky, the gunman is demanding her release. Other reports say the perp claims to be armed with bombs, among other weapons ... the full extent of which is still unknown. Local law enforcement has descended on the scene to negotiate, as has the FBI.

Even crazier ... there was apparently a bar-mitzvah going on when the guy busted in, which was being live-streamed to the synagogue's FB account ... a stream that has since been deactivated. Still, some of the snippets that were captured are now surfacing, and you can hear what is presumably the hostage-taker railing on America, and saying he's willing to die.

The fact this man crashed a synagogue for hostages is not lost on those who covered the Siddiqui case. She is reported to have had strong objections to Jewish people representing her in her defense. She also asked for Jews to be tossed from the jury pool at the time.

At the moment, the synagogue's rabbi and three others are believed to be among those being held captive. No word on injuries or deaths yet, but SWAT units have arrived.

Kanye West was all smiles after attending his daughter Chicago's 4th birthday party, but there's some shade he's throwing in the process.

Kanye seemed thrilled he was able to show up to the shindig but said it was Travis Scott who told him the party was being thrown at Kylie's home. He also thanked Kris and Corey ... and Kylie for letting him in, but made no mention of Kim. He also groused that security stopped him briefly at the door.

He was clearly happy, saying his kids are the priority in his life ... and you can see and hear he really seems to mean it. We're told he spent about 2 hours there.

The party looked super fun, and Kanye is smiling as he chatted with some of the guests. You can see Kanye and Kim in the same shot, but they are not together.

As we reported, Kanye accused Kim earlier in the day of keeping him from seeing Chi on her birthday -- he says she refused to give him the address of the party -- and claimed it was an example of how fathers have been kept out of the family unit.

Our Kim sources say this was a simple case of crossed signals, and she never wanted to exclude him. The sources say Kim and Kanye discussed having 2 parties for Chicago, and Kanye was supposed to throw the second one after 4 PM when he picked her up.

Jordan Cashmyer, who starred in "16 & Pregnant," has died ... TMZ has learned.

Although the medical examiner has confirmed her death with TMZ, no cause or manner of death was provided.

Jordan and her boyfriend, Derek Taylor and daughter Evie were on the show back in 2014. Their situation was desperate ... they were homeless as she was about to give birth. Jordan's family did not approve of her relationship with Derek and essentially disowned her.

Their struggle did not end when the cameras stopped rolling.

Jordan and Derek broke up after the show, but they were not able to properly care for their daughter. Jordan's dad and stepmom stepped in and shared guardianship with him for a time.

Jordan signed away her custody rights to Derek's mom back in 2015, on a temporary basis. She was struggling with mental health issues, addiction and had suicidal thoughts.

By 2017, Jordan was working at a strip club and ended up getting arrested for drug possession.

The husband of country music singer Sara Evans was arrested for alleged domestic violence Saturday after cops say he tried slamming his car into the car in which Evans was being driven.

Jay Barker, a former Univ. of Alabama quarterback, was taken into custody and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He was placed on a 12-hour hold in Davidson County and released Saturday night after posting $10k bail.

Evans says she was leaving a party, got in the passenger seat of a friend's car, and as they backed out of the driveway, she says she saw Barker gunning his car in reverse, trying to hit them ... this according to the affidavit obtained by station WIAT. Barker's car missed Evans' car.

The affidavit says the 2 are still married but have separated.

Barker has a radio talk show which is Alabama-based ... “The Jay Barker Show.”

Morgan Wallen made an unsurprising appearance Saturday night in Nashville, hopping on stage with Lil Durk ... and the crowd loved it.

Durk and Wallen performed their song, "Broadway Girls," and it was all part of the Martin Luther King Freedom Fest ... a concert celebrating MLK Day.

Before Wallen came out, Durk told fans at Bridgestone Arena that his singing buddy was "genuine at heart." He went on ... “Can’t nobody cancel shit without me saying it, you know what I’m saying?”

With that intro, Wallen came out, asked the crowd what's up, and they began singing.

The festival lineup includes Moneybagg Yo, Rod Wave, and Latto.

Wallen appeared in Nashville last weekend at the Grand Ole Opry and sang "Flower Shops" with Ernest. Some artists, including Jason Isbell, Rissi Palmer and Joy Oladokun, were critical, this after video surfaced of Wallen using the n-word a year ago.

So much drama this week ... Novak's pissed off Australia, and Kanye ... well, there are issues. So, we gotta ask ...

Bob Saget wouldn't be the first one in his immediate family to die from a heart attack ... it's what killed 3 of his uncles.

In Bob's book, "Dirty Daddy: The Chronicles of a Family Man Turned Filthy Comedian," he references that 3 of his uncles died from a heart attack between the ages of 37 and 41.

When Bob was 8, his Uncle Ozzie died at 40 from a heart attack while chasing some kids down the block after they stole a tire.

Tragedy struck again the following year ... Bob lost his Uncle Manny to a double heart attack.

Then, when Bob was 15, he says his Uncle Sammy died at 37 of a heart attack suffered while playing tennis.

Bob also notes his own dad suffered a massive heart attack when he was a kid ... then had another heart attack just 6 months later.

Well, chalk this up to, if you don't laugh you'll cry, because 'SNL' slayed with their cold open, where "President Biden" blamed COVID and pretty much every other problem plaguing on America on ... SPIDER-MAN!!!

Pete Davidson -- who's become the star of 'SNL' -- appeared in all his glory as Joe Biden in the real universe, and it's pretty hilarious.

But before that, Biden (played by James Austin Johnson) explained there's a cure for COVID, and it's not the vaccine ... simply put, "Stop seeing 'Spider-Man!'"

Biden's getting grilled like a cheeseburger at a White House news conference, connecting the dots by saying, "Now, think about it. When did ‘Spider-Man’ come out? Dec. 17. When did every single person get Omicron? The week after Dec. 17."

And then there was this advice from the Prez  ... "See anything else.” I saw the first half-hour of ‘House of Gucci.’ That’s more than enough movie for anyone."

As for how you know if you have COVID ... "You want to know if you have Covid? Look at your hand. Is it holding a ticket that says you recently went to see ‘Spider-Man’? If so, you have Covid."

Then Pete appears, baring his tattoo-covered chest and explaining why, in the real world, Biden was not President. It's funny, but treading on dangerous territory.

The lead trainer from "Canine Intervention" is absolutely pissed about that disturbing viral video of a trainer in Texas abusing a dog, and says there's no place for someone like that in his industry.

Jas Leverette had some choice words for the guy in the brutal video recorded at TyCalK9 Dog Training Center, near Houston. Jas spoke directly to the trainer, saying "You're a coward, bro!"

He explained that, as a trainer himself, this sort of behavior puts a black eye on the whole field of dog training -- and he hopes the authorities in Texas take the incident seriously enough to prosecute the guy in the video.

The video is tough to watch ... the trainer picks up the German shepherd by its leash, swings it over his shoulder and then slams it down onto a concrete floor.

Jas tells us this kind of treatment can be really terrible for animals, and leaves them with PTSD, in addition to any physical injuries. The Netflix star says some people have been contacting him over the video ... because the Texas training facility has a similar name to his company.

Jas makes one thing clear -- he is NOT affiliated with this guy at all, and thinks he ought to pay for what he did.

COVID-19 can't stop Los Angeles from partying before Super Bowl LVI ... 'cause several event planners tell TMZ Sports the show will go on -- with precautions, of course.

As COVID-19 cases surge throughout the country, many questions have been raised about whether the traditional bashes leading up to the big game will go on as scheduled.

We've learned at least three of the biggest parties will continue as planned -- including the event put on by sports agent Leigh Steinberg -- AKA the real Jerry Maguire -- at Sony Studios.

We're told Steinberg's invite-only bash will be filled with celebs and current/former players -- featuring tons of food and drink ... as well as a cool brain lounge with insane technology, a silent auction and more.

FYI -- Sony can host up to 5,000 people, but we're told the event will only be about half capacity ... and all guests must be vaxxed or have a negative test within 48 hours of arrival.

"It is 90% outdoor," LeeAnn Adams, the VP of Special Projects for Leigh Steinberg Entertainment, tells us.

"We only have one indoor space where our brain lounge is because we have very valuable equipment in there."

"We're as COVID-safe as possible and indoors, obviously, you have to wear a mask. You're in Los Angeles and it is mandated."

Hall of Famer Terrell Davis and Babes and Ballers will be hosting their own SB bash as well ... with rapper Lil Jon and the Los Angeles Rams cheerleaders set to attend at the Academy Hall.

Davis' shindig will also follow Los Angeles' COVID-19 protocols -- in fact, they're adding extra hand sanitizer stations at the venue ... as they're expecting 1,200 guests.

"The club has some already fixed to the wall," Steve Fowler of Babes and Ballers said. "But we'll have a couple more at every entrance, bathroom, VIP room and patio."

For NAAB Radio's event, the station is anticipating 500 party-goers at the Taglyan Complex ... and will also stick to the city's guidelines.

"We plan to follow all CDC protocols and to have our guests show proof of vaccinations/test results while having a memorable Super Bowl 2022 Party," NAAB Radio co-founder Denise Darrell tells us.

Now that the safety concerns are out of the way ... it's time to party.

NFL Wild Card Weekend is here ... and what better way to kick-start the 2022 playoffs than to play a quick game of "Guess That Shredded Bod!!!"

There are six games going down in the opening round ... with the 49ers, Cowboys, Rams, Cardinals, Bills, Patriots, Steelers, Chiefs, Raiders, Bengals, Eagles and Buccaneers all getting in on the action.

With that being said, there are a lot of stars who've shown off their athletic figures over the years ... including quarterbacks Kyler Murray, Dak Prescott and Joe Burrow.

The receivers of Wild Card weekend have also shown out ... from JuJu Smith-Schuster to Tyreek Hill and Deebo Samuel.

So grab the chips and dip and scroll through the pics as you wait for kickoff.

The Playboy Mansion would be crawling with hookers and celebs on Thursday nights back in its heyday -- and a new documentary claims Hugh Hefner himself cooked up the weekly event.

Hef dubbed the traditional gathering "Pig Night," and it started with 2 pimps bringing in carloads of prostitutes from Sunset Blvd. ... according to his former girlfriend, Sondra Theodore, and others who worked at the mansion.

Sondra says she tended to look the other way while Hugh did all sorts of "crazy stuff," but this ritual stood out to her and got her attention.

The upcoming A&E series, "Secrets of Playboy" ... describes "Pig Night" as a sort of dinner party that served as a jumping-off point for sex parties.

According to the mansion insiders, Hugh would sit at the head of the table smoking his famous pipe while the hookers drank and ate with movie and TV stars. They say the girls would get ratings and quick medical checks before slipping out of the room for sex rendezvous with the celebs.

Pete Davidson has been a walking billboard recently, for a sandwich shop in downtown L.A. ... and while he's getting no coins, he's showing lotsa love to the deli and its owners.

The folks at Uncle Paulie's Deli tell TMZ ... Pete doesn't have a stake in Uncle Paulie's, he's just good pals with Paulie, with something in common ... they're both from New York.

Pete was rockin' an Uncle Paulie's hat this week at the Knicks game.

The deli definitely appreciates the support from Pete ... fact is, he's the most famous walking sandwich board in America, and the publicity is worth a fortune.

The Knicks game wasn't a one-off. Pete recently wore a Paulie's hoodie and hat at Nobu in Malibu ... oh, and he ran into Martha Stewart and they posed for a photo.

It's good/great timing ... the deli's opening 2 new shops in L.A. in the next month ... one on W 3rd St., and another in Studio City.

Hidden within this wide-eyed woman is an eye-catching actress who has gone down in blockbuster history for her iconic roles.

This smirking star is more recognizable in huge franchise films ... one filled with epic robots which launched her career into stardom. Besides breaking records at the box office, this sought-after celebrity also killed it -- and tons of men -- in a beloved cult classic.

Bob Saget's widow, Kelly Rizzo, is speaking out for the first time since her husband's death -- and her tribute to him is both heartbreaking and touching.

Kelly took to IG Saturday with a lengthy statement, which was attached to a photo of her and Bob. She writes, "My sweet husband. After much reflection this week, I'm trying, really trying, to not think I was robbed of time. But instead to think: How lucky was I that I got to be the one to be married to THE MOST INCREDIBLE MAN ON EARTH."

She goes on to explain how in love with him she was, and how he deserves every ounce of credit and adulation he's getting in the wake of his death, 'cause he was that great of a guy.

KR adds, "Most importantly. I have no regrets. We loved each other so damn much and told each other 500 times every day. Constantly. I know how much he loved me until the very last moment and he knew the same. I'm so grateful for that. Not everyone gets that."

She continues to explain how much she appreciates everyone reaching out with love and support, explaining ... "Bob had so much more he wanted to do and so much more love to give. And to the best of my ability it will be my mission to share how amazing he was with the world, and try in some small way to keep spreading his message of love and laughter."

Kelly also made sure to shout out his passion for Scleroderma research, a disease he was fighting to eradicate ... this after his sister succumbed to it and died.