Washington (TDI): Two staff members of the Israeli embassy in Washington were shot dead Wednesday evening while leaving an event at a Jewish museum, police said.
The officials in Israel and the United States termed the attack as the latest in a growing wave of antisemitism as Israel intensifies its offensive in Gaza, and as food security experts have warned that the enclave risks falling into famine unless Israel’s blockade ends.
Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith said at a media conference that the two victims, a man and a woman, were leaving an event at the Capital Jewish Museum around 9:15 p.m. Wednesday when the suspect approached a group of 4 individuals and opened fire.
The suspect was observed pacing outside the museum before the shooting, walked into the museum after the firing and was arrested by event security, Smith said.
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When he was arrested, the suspect started chanting, “Free, free Palestine,” according to Smith. She said law enforcement rejected any ongoing threat to the community.
The suspected shooter has been identified as Elias Rodriguez, 30, of Chicago.
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Israeli Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter stated that the two people killed were a young couple about to be engaged, adding the man had purchased a ring this week with the intent to propose next week in Jerusalem. Their identities were not immediately disclosed.
Former Israeli Ambassador to the United States Mike Herzog told Israeli Army Radio that the woman killed was a US employee of the embassy and the man was Israeli.
