Key events
Ben Doherty
The Executive Council of Australian Jewry says it is “horrified” by the double murder outside the Jewish Museum in Washington DC, describing it as an apparent “act of antisemitic terror”.
In a statement, the council’s president Daniel Aghion and co-chief executive Alex Ryvchin said:
“Our deepest sympathies are with the families of the dead, with the Israeli diplomatic corps and the American Jewish community. We hope justice is swift and decisive.”
US Speaker Mike Johnson on the shooting:
I’ve been informed of the tragic shooting that occurred outside of the Capitol Jewish Museum tonight in Washington D.C. We are monitoring the situation as more details become known and lifting up the victim’s families in our prayers.
The Associated Press has been talking to two people who were at the scene. It reports:
Yoni Kalin and Katie Kalisher were inside the museum when they heard gunshots and a man came inside looking distressed, they said. Kalin said people came to his aid and brought him water, thinking he needed help, without realizing he was the suspect. When police arrived, he pulled out a red keffiyeh and repeatedly yelled, “Free Palestine,’” Kalin said.
“This event was about humanitarian aid,” Kalin said. “How can we actually help both the people in Gaza and the people in Israel? How can we bring together Muslims and Jews and Christians to work together to actually help innocent people? And then here he is just murdering two people in cold blood.”
The shooting comes as Israel’s allies have demanded it allow food and medical aid into Gaza, where it has killed and maimed tens of thousands of Palestinians, mostly women and children, in its war on Hamas.
Late on Wednesday the UN said Israel had allowed in 90 aid trucks – some of the first since it imposed an extra tight blockade on the occupied territory since March but only a fraction of what is needed to prevent an imminent famine.
Israel has meanwhile kept up its daily attacks on schools, hospitals and shelters, killing and injuring scores of people. The military has also encircled and attacked two of northern Gaza’s last partially functioning hospitals, preventing anyone from leaving or entering the facilities.
One hospital, al Awda, was shelled while an Associated Press journalist was on the phone to its director, the news wire reported on Wednesday.
The shooting also comes after the Israeli military fired what it called “warning shots” near a delegation of foreign diplomats visiting the occupied West Bank, triggering global condemnation.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog said he was “devastated” by the shooting in Washington, which he blamed on antisemitism.
“This is a despicable act of hatred, of antisemitism, which has claimed the lives of two young employees of the Israeli embassy. Our hearts are with the loved ones of those murdered and our immediate prayers are with the injured. I send my full support to the Ambassador and all the embassy staff.”
He added: “We stand with the Jewish community in DC and across the US. America and Israel will stand united in defense of our people and our shared values. Terror and hate will not break us.”
Attorney general Pam Bondi said she would be doing “everything in our power” to keep the community safe, especially the Jewish community.
The suspect “will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law” she told the press conference.
A bit more from police chief Pamela A Smith. She said that prior to the shooting the suspect had been observed pacing outside the museum. He then approached a group of four people and produced a hand gun before opening fire. He then “entered the museum and was detained by event security”.
When he was taken into custody, the suspect began chanting, “Free, free Palestine,” Smith said.
President Donald Trump has sent his condolences to the families of the victims, saying “Hatred and Radicalism have no place in the USA”. In a post 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!
Suspect in custody, police say
A suspect is in custody following the shooting, which took place shortly after 9pm near the Capital Jewish Museum, police have told a press conference.
Police chief Pamela A Smith said a preliminary investigation showed that both vicitms were exiting an event that had been taking place at the museum when the attack took place. The suspect in custody was believed to be the only person involved.
The mayor of Washington DC, Muriel Bowser, said there was no active shooter situation.
Israeli ambassador says victims were a couple
The Israeli ambassador, Yechiel Leiter, has said the pair who were shot were a couple about to be engaged. He said the man had bought a ring this week “with the intention of proposing next week in Jerusalem.”
Opening summary
Two staff members of the Israeli embassy in Washington have been shot and killed Wednesday evening near a Jewish museum, homeland security secretary Kristi Noem said. Police have said a person is in custody.
Noem announced the deaths in a post on X after the shooting outside the Capital Jewish Museum, which is located steps away from the FBI’s field office in the nation’s capital.
Attorney General Pam Bondi said she was at the scene with former judge Jeanine Pirro, who serves as the US attorney in Washington.
Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, called the shooting a “depraved act of anti-Semitic terrorism.”
Police offered no details late Wednesday night on a potential motive for the shooting.
“We are confident that the US authorities will take strong action against those responsible for this criminal act,” Danon said in a post on X. “Israel will continue to act resolutely to protect its citizens and representatives — everywhere in the world.”
We will be following the developments live.
