On Wednesday evening, two employees of the Israeli embassy in Washington were shot and killed when they left an event in the Jewish Museum. According to the police, the suspect shouted “Free, Free Palestine” after being taken into custody, and etc.
Who is the suspicious Elias Rodriguez?
Suspect, identified as 30 -year -old Elias Rodriguez of Chicago, was seen before the shooting by stimulation in front of the museum, according to the chief of the metropolitan police Pamela Smithová. After the incident he entered the museum and was detained by securing events.
After Rodriguez was taken into custody, he began to sing “FREE, Palestine for free,” Smith said. She added that the enforcement of the right does not believe that there is no threat to the community. US President Donald Trump called “terrible” shooting and stressed that it was “based on anti -Semitism and must end”.
Also read: US Washington DC Shooting Live: 2 employees
Trump said hate and radicalism have no room in the US.
In the X White House post, he said, “This terrible killing of DC, of course based on anti -Semitism, must end now! Hate and radicalism have no place in the US. Defense.
US President Donald Trump called DC “terrible” shooting.
Israeli ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter said two killed individuals were a young couple on the brink of engagement.
AP said he shared that the man had bought an engagement ring earlier in the week and planned to design the next week in Jerusalem.
The Pami Bondi Prosecutor General confirmed that she was present on the scene along with former Judge Jeanine Pirro, who currently serves as an American lawyer in Washington and whose office will deal with the prosecution of the case.
Israeli war
The shooting occurred in the middle of the increased tension, when Israel intensifies its military campaign against Hamas in the Gaza Strip – a conflict that set the riots in the wider Middle East.
The war began on October 7, 2023, when Militants Hamas launched a surprising attack from Gaza and killed about 1,200 people and kidnapped approximately 250 others who took back to the coastal enclave.
Also read: “Sons of dogs, get us out of it”: Palestinian prescription urges Hamas to liberate hostages, Hamas call it “insult”
Since then, the Israeli military reaction has led to more than 53,000 people in Gaza to death according to local health authorities. Most killed were women and children, although the numbers do not distinguish between civilians and warriors.
The ongoing conflict was displaced by around 90 % of about 2 million Gaza inhabitants, caused a serious hunger crisis and led to extensive destruction of urban infrastructure in the region, as stated by AP.
What did an eyewitness say?
As the Associated Press, Yoni Kalin and Katie Kalisher, who were in the museum shooting, said, they remembered missiles when he entered the building.
Kalin said that the participants initially believed that the man needed help and offered him water, he did not know he was suspected.
Read also: Hamas “probably killed” leader, says Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu; Declares “the whole Gaza will be under Israeli control”
When the police arrived, he pulled out the red keffiyeh and shouted repeatedly, “Palestine freedom,” Kalin said.
“This event concerned humanitarian aid,” Kalin said. “How can we help people in Gaza and people in Israel? How can we combine Muslims, Jews and Christians to work together to really help innocent people?
The main Jewish museum
The shooting took place outside the main Jewish museum, which is just a few steps from the FBI field office in Washington, DC in response to shooting, the museum in its statement said they were “deeply sad and horrified by nonsensical violence outside the museum.”
“We realize that there are also threats associated with this,” said Beatrice, Gurwitz, the CEO, as the Associated Press states. “And again, we want to ensure that our space is equally pleasant and safe for anyone who comes here while exploring these stories.”
Also read: “Sorry”: Harvard President apologizes for reports about anti-Semitism and Anti-Muslim bias
Israeli diplomats have long been the goal of violence that attacked over decades as a state-supported and Palestinian militants in the middle of the wider Israeli-Palestinian conflict that has its roots in the foundation of Israel in 1948.
The Palestinians are trying to establish an independent state composed of Gaza and the West Bank, with its capital East Jerusalem, the territory that Israel captured during the six -day war in 1967.
How can we really help people in Gaza and people in Israel? How can we combine Muslims and Jews and Christians to work together to really help innocent people?
However, the peaceful process focused on conflict resolution has remained stopped for years.
(With the entry from agencies)
(Tagstotranslate) US
