Israeli couple shot dead in Washington DC named – as attack condemned

Two Israeli embassy workers killed by a gunman in Washington DC last night have been identified as a couple who were about to be engaged.

Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgram were shot dead as they left an event at the Capital Jewish Museum in the US capital.

The suspect, who shot at a group of four people just over a mile from the White House, chanted a pro-Palestinian slogan in custody.

Yechiel Leiter, Israel’s ambassador to the US, said the man killed had “purchased a ring this week with the intention of proposing to his girlfriend next week in Jerusalem”.

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The reaction to the shooting has been one of shock, with President Donald Trump condemning the “horrible killings” which he said were “based obviously on antisemitism”.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his heart ached for the families of the victims, “whose lives were cut
short in a moment by an abhorrent antisemitic murderer”.

Mr Netanyahu said that security would be stepped up at Israeli embassies around the world.

It is believed that the shooting could result in the Israeli leader and his cabinet taking an even harder line on Gaza, where Israeli troops intend to occupy the whole enclave.

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Jojo Drake Kalin, the organiser of the museum event, told Sky News that in the moments after the shooting staff initially thought the suspect was a bystander seeking shelter.

“I actually offered and gave him water – I was actually looking evil in the eye.”

She said the event was designed to bring together young professionals to talk about bridge building and helping get humanitarian aid into Gaza.

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“It’s painfully ironic that, at a time when we were speaking about bridge building, someone came in with such pain and destruction.”

Washington Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith also said that the suspect entered the museum after the shooting.

“Once in handcuffs, the suspect identified where he discarded the weapon, and that weapon has been recovered, and he implied that he committed the offence,” she added.

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After being taken into custody he was filmed chanting: “Free Palestine, Free Palestine”.