What we know about the Israeli embassy staff shooting

A young couple who worked for the Israeli Embassy have been shot dead outside a Jewish museum in Washington DC.

Police say the victims, Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, were killed by a man who shouted "free, free Palestine" while he was arrested. Elias Rodriguez has been charged with first-degree murder.

Here's what you need to know about the shooting.

At 21:08 local time on Wednesday, police received calls about a shooting outside the Capital Jewish Museum in downtown Washington DC.

A man and a woman were found unconscious and not breathing at the scene, and later died.

The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) said the couple had been leaving an event at the museum which is in an area with tourist sites, museums and government buildings.

Police allege the shooting was committed by Elias Rodriguez, 31, of Chicago.

He had been seen pacing up and down outside the museum before using a handgun to open fire on a group of four people, the MPD said.

The suspect then went inside the museum, where he was detained. He repeatedly shouted "free Palestine" while being arrested, police said.

Some in the museum had initially thought he was a distressed bystander when he burst in.

One witness, Yoni Kalin, said people inside had been "calming him down, giving him water, taking care of him".

"Little did we know he was somebody that executed people in cold blood," he said.

The MPD and the FBI are investigating the attack as an act of terrorism and a hate crime.

Yaron Lischinsky, 30, and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, 26, had both worked at the Israeli embassy in Washington DC.

Mr Lischinsky had planned to propose to Miss Milgrim in Jerusalem next week, Israel's ambassador to the US, Yechiel Leiter, said on Thursday.

Yaron Lischinsky, a joint German-Israeli national, had worked as a research assistant at the embassy, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Born in Germany, he had moved to Israel as a teenager before relocating to Washington, his friend Ronen Shoval said.

He was a "devout Christian" with "good character", Mr Shoval told the BBC.

He had also previously served in the Israeli military, Israel's ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, said.

Sarah Lynn Milgrim, an American from Kansas, worked for the Israeli embassy's public diplomacy department, according to her LinkedIn page.

Her father, Robert, told the BBC's US partner CBS News that his daughter "loved Israel" and "loved everybody that lived in the Middle East".

"She had a lot of close Palestinian friends, as well as many Israeli friends," he said.

KU Hillel, a Jewish student organisation at the University of Kansas, said Miss Milgrim was a "beloved alum" with a "bright spirit".

The Israeli embassy said its staff were "heartbroken and devastated" by the deaths.

Elias Rodriguez has been charged with two counts of first degree murder in relation to the shooting.

He has also been charged with murder of foreign officials, causing death with a firearm, and discharging a firearm in a crime of violence.

According to an affidavit, the suspect flew from Chicago on Tuesday and declared a gun legally bought in Illinois in his checked luggage.

Authorities say the investigation is ongoing, and more charges could be brought against him as it develops.

Interim DC attorney Jeanine Pirro said it was too early to say whether prosecutors will seek the death penalty, but that this was a "death penalty eligible case".

The suspect is being held in detention and will appear in court for a preliminary hearing on 18 June, Pirro added.

He is believed to have acted alone, said US Attorney General Pam Bondi.

Earlier on Thursday, the FBI searched a Chicago property linked to the suspect.

Outside the apartment, neighbour John Wayne Fry told reporters that he had lived in the same apartment building as the suspect for around a year.

He said that the suspect displayed a photo outside his flat of a Palestinian-American child who was stabbed to death outside Chicago in 2023.

The killing caused international headlines. The man who killed six-year-old Wadee Alfayoumi was convicted of hate crime charges earlier this month. Officials say he was motivated by hatred for Islam and the conflict in Gaza.

It is unclear whether the suspect has had any direct contact with the boy's family.

Fry said that he hadn't talked with the suspect about politics, but said "If I had, I would have talked him out of it."

The suspect had been working at the American Osteopathic Information Association since 2024, according to online records examined by BBC Verify.

Social media accounts belonging to him indicate that he was heavily involved in the pro-Palestinian protest movement.

An online story indicated that he was associated with a fringe communist group, The Party for Socialism and Liberation, in 2017, and had been interviewed as a member of the group.

In a post on X, the party said they "have nothing to do with this shooting and do not support it" and have had no contact with the suspect for seven years.

Police said they had no prior interactions with the suspect and had not seen anything in his background "that would have placed him on our radar".

The event at the Capital Jewish Museum had been billed as a networking opportunity to bring Jewish young professionals and the diplomatic community together.

The organiser, American Jewish Committee, said it was open to those in the DC diplomatic community. The event's theme was advertised as "turning pain into purpose".

The event description said it invited humanitarian aid organisers responding to crises in the Middle East, including Gaza.

The location was only shared with those who signed up to attend.

President Donald Trump has condemned the attack and called it antisemitic.

Posting on his social media platform Truth Social, he said: "These horrible D.C. killings, based obviously on antisemitism, must end, now!

"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!"

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was "outraged by the horrifying antisemitic murder" of the victims.

His office said he had spoken to both victims' parents.

"My heart grieves for the families of the young beloveds, whose lives were cut short in a moment by an abhorrent antisemitic murderer," he said, adding he had directed Israeli embassies around the world to increase security.

He and Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar also said the deaths were caused by "anti-Israeli incitement" which they said was being carried out by European leaders.

Earlier this week, the leaders of the UK, France and Canada signed a strongly worded joint letter condemning Israel's actions in Gaza.

In a video address, Netanyahu linked Wednesday's killings in Washington to Hamas's 7 October 2023 attack on Israel.

"As he was taken away, he chanted, 'Free Palestine!' This is exactly the same chant we heard on October 7th," Netanyahu said.

He accused Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and Mark Carney of "emboldening Hamas to continue fighting forever" by calling for Israel to end its war in Gaza.

Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response to Hamas's cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.

At least 53,475 people have been killed in Gaza since then, including 3,340 since the Israeli offensive resumed, according to the territory's health ministry.