Man accused of killing Israeli Embassy staffers indicted on federal charges
Prosecutors have described the killing as calculated and planned, saying Rodriguez flew to the Washington region from Chicago ahead of the Capital Jewish Museum event with a handgun in his checked luggage. He purchased a ticket for the event about three hours before it started, authorities have said in court papers.
An attorney for Rodriguez didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment Wednesday.
Witnesses described him pacing outside before approaching a group of four people and opening fire. Surveillance video showed Rodriguez advancing closer to Lischinsky and Milgrim as they fell to the ground, leaning over them and firing additional shots. He appeared to reload before jogging off, officials have said.
After the shooting, authorities say Rodriguez went inside the museum and stated that he 'did it.'
'I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza, I am unarmed,' he spontaneously said, according to court documents. He also told detectives that he admired an active-duty Air Force member who set himself on fire outside the Israeli Embassy in February 2024, describing the man as 'courageous' and a 'martyr.'
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Murdered Congressional intern's mom says Trump should take over Washington, DC
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Washington, D.C., residents can expect to see an increase in federal law enforcement around the city starting as early as this week, a White House official told ABC News. The official stressed that operational details have yet to be finalized, but the White House is working with multiple agencies to use federal and local enforcement to monitor crime in the city. "Washington, D.C., is an amazing city, but it has sadly been plagued by petty and violent crime for far too long. President Trump is committed to making our Nation's capital safer and even more beautiful for its residents, lawmakers, and visitors from all around the world," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement to ABC News. Despite Trump's claims that violent crime in the city has gotten out of hand, police statistics show that in the past two years violent crime in Washington, D.C., has fallen dramatically. "Compared to where it was two years ago, when it really peaked in 2023, it's down 50%," Jeff Asher, a national crime analyst, told ABC News on Thursday. Asher said that, statistically, violent crime in Washington, D.C., is back down to levels not seen since before the start of the pandemic in 2020. Overall, violent crime in Washington, D.C., and across the country skyrocketed during the pandemic as criminal courts shut down and jail populations were dramatically reduced in an effort to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Homicides in Washington, D.C., rose from 166 in 2019 to 226 in 2021 and climbed to 274 in 2023, according to crime stats from the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department. In the first seven months of 2025, compared to the same period in 2024, overall violent crime has dropped 26%, homicides have fallen 12%, sexual assaults are down nearly 50%, assaults with a dangerous weapon have tumbled 20%, and robberies are down nearly 30%. 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Yahoo
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- Yahoo
‘Palestinian Pele' Suleiman al-Obeid killed while seeking aid in Gaza
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Los Angeles Times
8 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
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