Washington: Who were Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky, Israeli Embassy staffers killed days before getting engaged?

Two Israeli embassy staffers who were shot dead by a gunman in Washington were about to get engaged.

Yaron Lischinsky, an Israeli citizen, and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, an American, were killed as they exited an event at the Capital Jewish Museum — about 1.3 miles (2 km) from the White House — in Washington.

Israel's Ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, told reporters in Washington that the young staffers were a couple and were about to get engaged.

“The young man purchased a ring this week with the intention of proposing to his girlfriend next week in Jerusalem,” Leiter said. “They were a beautiful couple.”

In a post on social media platform X, the Embassy of Israel in the US condemned the attack and said: “Yaron and Sarah were our friends and colleagues. They were in the prime of their lives. This evening, a terrorist shot and killed them as they exited an event at the Capital Jewish Museum in DC.”

“The entire embassy staff is heartbroken and devastated by their murder. No words can express the depth of our grief and horror at this devastating loss. Our hearts are with their families, and the embassy will be by their side during this terrible time,” it added.

World leaders have expressed outrage over the barbaric killings.

President Donald Trump also condemned the killings in the heart of the US capital. He said, “These horrible D.C. killings, based obviously on antisemitism, must end, NOW!”

According to the victims’ LinkedIn profiles, Lischinsky was a research assistant at the Israeli embassy, while Milgrim worked for its public diplomacy department.

A video circulating on social media showed a bearded man in a jacket and white shirt shouting “free, free Palestine” as he was being taken away by police.

Gunshots rang outside the Jewish Museum

The shootings come in the wake of the ongoing Israel-Gaza war for more than one and a half years.

The gunman shot at a group of four people with a handgun, hitting both the victims and shouting “free Palestine”, authorities said.

Gunshots rang out on the sidewalk outside the Jewish Museum as it was holding an event for young professionals and diplomatic staff.

Washington Police Chief Pamela Smith told reporters that the suspect was observed pacing back and forth outside the museum before the shooting.

“He approached a group of four people, produced a handgun and opened fire,” Smith said. “After the shooting, the suspect then entered the museum and was detained by event security.”

She added that the handcuffed man, whom she identified as Elias Rodriguez, 30, from Chicago, told them where he discarded the gun.