BURST
Authorities have “tentatively” identified Chicago resident Elias Rodriguez, 31, as the accused who gunned down two Israeli diplomats in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday night.
According to police in the U.S. Capitol, on-site security detained Rodriguez near the Capital Jewish Museum, about 12 blocks east of the White House, after he allegedly opened fire on four people leaving an event there.
Israeli Embassy employees Yaron Lischinsky, 30, and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, 26, were killed. Their ages aren’t immediately available, but the Israeli Ambassador to the U.S., Yechiel Leiter, said they were a young couple about to be engaged. The two other individuals, both American women, escaped physically unharmed, according to officials who spoke to CNN .
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
Washington Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith said witnesses reported Rodriguez pacing back and forth in front of the building before the incident.
Once in police custody, Smith said the suspect “implied he committed the offence” and told officers where he’d disposed of the handgun he’d allegedly used, which has since been recovered.
“The suspect chanted ‘Free, free Palestine’ while in custody,” Smith told reporters during a press conference.
Smith also said Rodriguez, who is believed to have acted alone, hasn’t had any previous interactions with metro police.
“We don’t see anything in his background that would have put him on our radar at this time,” she added, but officials will conduct a “deep dive” to learn more.
Rodriguez is reportedly being interviewed by Washington police and the FBI, per CNN. The Israeli embassy is also working with law enforcement.
Smith said it’s too early to discuss a possible motive and didn’t answer whether Rodrigues travelled to D.C. with the intent to carry out this act.
In response to reports by media outlets such as The Independent and NDTV that he is an active member of the Party of Socialism and Liberation, a U.S. communist party and offshoot of the Marxist-Leninist Workers World Party, the group denied any current involvement.
“We reject any attempt to associate the PSL with the DC shooting,” they posted on X . “Elias Rodriguez is not a member of the PSL. He had a brief association with one branch of the PSL that ended in 2017. We know of no contact with him in over 7 years. We have nothing to do with this shooting and do not support it.”
We reject any attempt to associate the PSL with the DC shooting. Elias Rodriguez is not a member of the PSL. He had a brief association with one branch of the PSL that ended in 2017. We know of no contact with him in over 7 years. We have nothing to do with this shooting and do…
— Party for Socialism and Liberation (@pslnational) May 22, 2025
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