Two Israeli embassy staff were killed in a shooting outside an event at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC, on Wednesday night, and a suspect is in custody, officials said.
A man and a woman were shot and killed in the area of 3rd and F streets in Northwest which is near the museum, an FBI field office and the U.S. attorney’s office. They were a young couple about to be engaged to be married, the Israeli ambassador said.
Washington police chief Pamela Smith said a single suspect who was seen pacing outside the museum before the event was in custody. The suspect chanted “Free Palestine, Free Palestine,” in custody, she said.
Smith said the suspect, tentatively identified as 30-year-old Elias Rodriguez, had no previous contact with police.
Tal Naim Cohen, a spokesperson for the Israeli embassy in Washington, said two of its staff members were shot “at close range” while attending a Jewish event at the museum.
The Israeli embassy did not immediately respond to questions about the shooter, the victims or the motive for the attack.
Mayor Muriel Bowser said at a press conference Wednesday night there is no active threat to the public.
In a post on Truth Social, U.S. President Donald Trump expressed condolences to the families of the victims and condemned the shooting.
“These horrible D.C. 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 President Isaac Herzog and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also condemned the incident.
Tal Naim Cohen, a spokesperson for the Israeli embassy in Washington, said two of its staff members were shot “at close range” while attending a Jewish event at the museum.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a post on X: “We will bring this depraved perpetrator to justice.”
FBI Director Kash Patel said he and his team had been briefed on the shooting.
“While we’re working with [Metropolitan Police Department] to respond and learn more, in the immediate, please pray for the victims and their families,” he wrote on X.
Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, called the shooting “a depraved act of anti-Semitic terrorism.”
“Harming diplomats and the Jewish community is crossing a red line,” Danon said in a post on X. “We are confident that the US authorities will take strong action against those responsible for this criminal act.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi and U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro were on the scene of the shooting.
‘This event was about humanitarian aid’
Yoni Kalin and Katie Kalisher were inside the museum when they heard gunshots and a man came inside looking distressed, they said.
Kalin said people came to his aid and brought him water, thinking he needed help, without realizing he was the suspect.
When police arrived, he pulled out a red keffiyeh and repeatedly yelled, “Free Palestine,'” Kalin said.
“This event was about humanitarian aid,” Kalin said. “How can we actually help both the people in Gaza and the people in Israel? How can we bring together Muslims and Jews and Christians to work together to actually help innocent people? And then here he is just murdering two people in cold blood.”
The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington said in a statement that they are horrified by the shooting and “mourn the loss of the two individuals killed in the attack.”
“Our hearts are with their families and loved ones, and with all of those who are impacted by this tragic act of antisemitic violence,” the federation said.
