WASHINGTON (AP) — Two staff members of the Israeli embassy were shot and killed Wednesday evening while leaving an event at a Jewish museum in the nation’s capital, and the suspect and yelled “free, free Palestine” after he was arrested, police said.
The two victims, a man and a woman, were leaving an event at the Capital Jewish Museum when the 30-year-old suspect approached a group of four people and opened fire, Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith said at a news conference.
The suspect was observed pacing outside the museum before the shooting, walked into the museum after the shooting and was detained by event security, Smith said.
When he was taken into custody, the man began chanting, “free, free Palestine,” Smith said.
Attorney General Pam Bondi said she was at the scene with former judge Jeanine Pirro, who serves as the U.S. attorney in Washington.
Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, called the shooting a “depraved act of anti-Semitic terrorism.”
“We are confident that the US authorities will take strong action against those responsible for this criminal act,” Danon said in a post on X. “Israel will continue to act resolutely to protect its citizens and representatives — everywhere in the world.”
