Washington: Reactions to gun incident – “Act of hate”
Washington. US President Donald Trump has strongly condemned the shooting incident that left two people dead near the Jewish Museum in the US capital, Washington. "These horrific killings in Washington, clearly rooted in anti-Semitism, must stop, now!" he wrote on the online platform Truth Social – partly in capital letters. Hate and radicalism have no place in the US. Trump expressed his condolences to the victims' families. "It's so sad that something like this could happen!"
US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem announced on Platform X late last night (local time) that two Israeli embassy employees were killed near the Jewish Museum. The news site "Jewish Insider" quoted an eyewitness as saying that the shooter was wearing a scarf called a keffiyeh, also known as a Palestinian scarf. He allegedly shouted "Free Palestine."
In this image from video provided by WJLA, a person watches as law enforcement investigates the scene after two Israeli Embassy employees in Washington were killed outside the Capital Jewish Museum.
Source: Uncredited/WJLA/AP/dpa
After the killing , US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called it a "brazen act of cowardly, anti-Semitic violence." He condemned it "in the strongest possible terms," he wrote on the X platform. Prayers were with the family.
Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog also expressed his horror at the attack. "I am shocked by the scenes in Washington, D.C. This is a despicable act of hatred and anti-Semitism that claimed the lives of two young Israeli embassy employees," Herzog said in a statement. "We stand with the Jewish community in D.C. and throughout the United States," he said.
"America and Israel will stand together in defense of our people and our shared values. Terror and hatred will not break us," Herzog added. The attack took place against the backdrop of the war between Israel and the Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
The two killed employees of the Israeli embassy in the US capital, Washington, were a young couple who were about to get engaged. Israeli Ambassador Yechiel Leiter told reporters. The man had bought a ring this week and planned to propose to his girlfriend in Jerusalem the following week. "They were a beautiful couple who had come to enjoy an evening in Washington's cultural center," the ambassador said.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar expressed his horror at the incident. "Israeli representatives around the world are constantly exposed to heightened risk—especially in these times," Saar said on Platform X. He called it a terrorist attack. Israel is in close contact with American authorities, he added. "Israel will not bow to terror."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made similar comments. Netanyahu's office said Thursday that he was "shocked" by the "horrific, anti-Semitic" act. "We are witnessing the terrible price of anti-Semitism and rampant hate speech against Israel," the prime minister was quoted as saying. He called on Israeli missions around the world to tighten their security measures.
RND/dpa
rnd
