Israeli embassy staffer, Yaron Lischinsky and soon-to-be fiancée, killed outside Jewish museum in Washington in antisemitic attack
The couple were planning to get engaged in Jerusalem next week
Two staff members of the Israeli embassy in Washington, DC, were shot and killed at close range Wednesday night while attending an event hosted by the American Jewish Committee (AJC) at the Capital Jewish Museum.
The two staffers were attending a cocktail event for young diplomats and Jewish professionals called the “Young Diplomats Reception,” which was organized by ACCESS, the American Jewish Committee's young professional division. The event was about working to address humanitarian crises in the Middle East and North Africa.
The Israeli embassy spokesperson, Tal Naim Cohen, said in a statement, “Two staff members of the Israeli embassy were shot this evening at close range while attending a Jewish event at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. We have full faith in law enforcement authorities on both the local and federal levels to apprehend the shooter and protect Israel’s representatives and Jewish communities throughout the United States.”
Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter said the two staffers were a couple about to be engaged.
“The couple that was gunned down tonight in the name of ‘Free Palestine’ was a couple about to be engaged,” Leiter said, noting that the young man, Yarón Lischinsky, had already purchased an engagement ring and was intending to propose to the other victim, Sarah Milgrim, on a trip to Jerusalem next week.
— SK (@ShanazRx) May 22, 2025
Lischinsky, who worked in the political department of the Israeli Embassy, held degrees in International Relations from the Hebrew University and Government, Diplomacy & Strategy from Reichman University.
The brother of All Israel News Correspondent and News Desk Manager Hanan Lischinsky, Yaron has published blog articles with both All Israel News and The Times of Israel.
Eyewitnesses said the man who carried out the shooting, Elias Rodriguez, 30, of Chicago, had been seen pacing outside the museum before the shooting. He was reportedly a member of a radical left-wing group that advocated on behalf of Palestinians.
After opening fire on a group of four people, he pretended to be a frightened eyewitness to the attack, asking for the staff there to call for the police. Only when the police came did he confess to being the shooter, taking out a keffiyeh and shouting, “Free Palestine!”
AJC CEO Ted Deutch said the organization is “devastated” by the attack at one of its events.
“We are devastated that two cherished friends and partners from the Israeli embassy were shot and killed as they left an American Jewish Committee (AJC) event at the Capital Jewish Museum earlier this evening. This is a shocking act of violence, and our community is holding each other tighter tonight,” Deutch wrote in a statement. “At this painful moment, we mourn with the victims’ families, loved ones, and all of Israel. May their memories be for a blessing.”
“While we wait for the conclusion of the police investigation – and urge all our friends and allies to do the same – it strongly appears that this was an attack motivated by hate against the Jewish people and the Jewish state,” the statement continued. “This senseless hate and violence must stop.”
President Isaac Herzog posted a message to 𝕏, saying he was “devastated” by the attacks.
“Our hearts are with the loved ones of those murdered and our immediate prayers are with the injured,” he wrote.
I am devastated by the scenes in Washington DC.
— יצחק הרצוג Isaac Herzog (@Isaac_Herzog) May 22, 2025
This is a despicable act of hatred, of antisemitism, which has claimed the lives of two young employees of the Israeli embassy.
Our hearts are with the loved ones of those murdered and our immediate prayers are with the injured.…
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called out the “wild incitement” and “blood libels” that led to the attack.
"We are witness to the terrible cost of the antisemitism and wild incitement against the State of Israel. Blood libels against Israel have a cost in blood and must be fought to the utmost,” Netanyahu said in a Hebrew statement. “My heart grieves for the families of the young beloveds, whose lives were cut short in a moment by an abhorrent antisemitic murderer.”
He also said he had “directed that security be increased at Israeli missions around the world and for the state's representatives.”
U.S. President Donald Trump posted a message condemning the shooting on his TRUTH social media.
“These horrible D.C. killings, based obviously on antisemitism, must end, NOW!” Trump wrote. “Hatred and Radicalism have no place in the USA. Condolences to the families of the victims. So sad that such things as this can happen! God Bless You ALL!”
The Israeli Embassy posted a message to 𝕏, mourning the two workers.
Yaron and Sarah were our friends and colleagues. They were in the prime of their lives.
— Embassy of Israel to the USA (@IsraelinUSA) May 22, 2025
This evening, a terrorist shot and killed them as they exited an event at the Capital Jewish Museum in DC.
The entire embassy staff is heartbroken and devastated by their murder. No words… pic.twitter.com/2HytKDp8Fr
“Yaron and Sarah were our friends and colleagues. They were in the prime of their lives,” the statement read. “The entire embassy staff is heartbroken and devastated by their murder. No words can express the depth of our grief and horror at this devastating loss.”
The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.
