Two Israeli embassy staffers shot dead in downtown Washington, lone suspect held

WASHINGTON: Two Israeli embassy staffers, committed to Israel-Palestinian dialogue and about to get engaged, were killed by a lone gunman in Washington, DC, on Wednesday night (May 21) and a suspect who chanted pro-Palestine slogans was in custody, officials said.

The two were shot and killed as they left an event at the Capital Jewish Museum, about 2km from the White House.

Washington Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith said a man shot at a group of four people with a handgun, hitting both the victims. He was seen pacing outside the museum prior to the shooting.

The victims, Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, were locally employed staff, the Israeli foreign ministry said. They were trying to promote reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians, separate advocacy groups each belonged to said.

Smith said the single suspect, identified as 30-year-old Elias Rodriguez from Chicago, chanted "Free Palestine, Free Palestine", after being taken into custody by event security having entered the museum.

"Once in handcuffs, the suspect identified where he discarded the weapon, and that weapon has been recovered, and he implied that he committed the offense," she said, adding that he had had no previous contact with police.

Witness Katie Kalisher, 29, said she was among people in the museum who were chatting to a man who entered looking very scared after gunshots were heard outside when he suddenly pulled out a keffiyeh scarf.

"He says, 'I did it. I did it for Gaza, free, free Palestine'. And he's chanting this. And then suddenly the police come in and they arrest him,” said Kalisher, a jewellery designer.

“But he didn't even have the Palestinian keffiyeh. He had the Jordanian keffiyeh. So I think he's a really confused person," she said.

Yechiel Leiter, Israel's ambassador to the US, told reporters the young man killed had "purchased a ring this week with the intention of proposing to his girlfriend next week in Jerusalem".

POLITICAL BACKDROP

President Donald Trump condemned the shooting. "These horrible DC killings, based obviously on antisemitism, must end, NOW!" he said in a message on Truth Social. "Hatred and Radicalism have no place in the USA."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his heart ached for the families of the victims, "whose lives were cut short in a moment by an abhorrent antisemitic murderer".

"We are witness to the terrible cost of the antisemitism and wild incitement against the State of Israel," he said on X, adding that both "must be fought to the utmost".

Security would be stepped up at Israeli embassies around the world, he said.

The shootings are likely to fuel polarisation in the United States over the war in Gaza between supporters of Israel and pro-Palestinian demonstrators.

Conservative Israel supporters led by Trump have branded pro-Palestinian protests as antisemitic and his administration has detained protesters without charge and cut off funding to elite US universities that have permitted demonstrations.

Deputy FBI Director Don Bongino said the suspect was being interviewed by the police and the FBI, saying on X it appeared to be an act of targeted violence.

"We will get you answers as soon as we can, without compromising additional leads," he said.

The event at the Capital Jewish Museum was held by the American Jewish Committee, an advocacy group that supports Israel and confronts antisemitism, according to its website.

Called the Young Diplomats Reception, an online invitation described it as bringing together Jewish professionals and the Washington diplomatic community.

The German-Israeli Society said Lischinsky had grown up in Bavaria and spoke fluent German.

"We remember him as an open-minded, intelligent and deeply committed person whose interest in German-Israeli relations and ways to achieve peaceful coexistence in the Middle East brightened the environment around him," said the society's president, Volker Beck.

Tech2Peace, an advocacy group training young Palestinians and Israelis and promoting dialogue between them, said Milgrim was an active volunteer who "brought people together with empathy and purpose".

"Her dedication to building a better future was evident in everything she did," it said. "Her voice and spirit will be profoundly missed."

"WE STAND STRONG"

Aaron Shemtov, who is studying at a rabbinical college in California, said he came to show support.

"When a member of the community gets murdered and gets killed for who he is, we stand proud, we stand strong, and we never give up," Shemtov said.

Rabbi Levi Shemtov, who was also at the scene, said the couple had attended his Washington synagogue occasionally.

"It's very sad to see that instead of these people coming to the ultimate celebration of their life - they were about to get engaged - they get shot dead in the street just because of who they are," said the rabbi.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said the shooting was a direct result of "toxic antisemitic incitement against Israel and Jews around the world" since the attack on Israel by Hamas militants in October 2023 that prompted the Israeli military campaign in Gaza.

Rights advocates have noted both rising antisemitism and anti-Arab hate in the US since then.

Such incidents have included an unsuccessful plot to attack a New York Jewish centre, an arson attack on Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro's residence and attacks on Florida businesses perceived as pro-Israel.

Incidents linked to anti-Palestinian prejudice have included the fatal stabbing of a 6-year-old Palestinian American boy in Illinois, the attempted drowning of a 3-year-old Palestinian American girl in Texas, a New York City assault by a pro-Israeli mob that chanted "Death to Arabs" and a violent mob attack on pro-Palestinian protesters in California.