Two Israeli embassy staffers killed in Washington shooting
Police officers work at the site where, according to the U.S. Homeland Security Secretary, two Israeli embassy staff were shot dead near the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., U.S. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
Two Israeli embassy staff were killed in a shooting outside an event at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC, on Wednesday night, according to officials and media reports.
A man and a woman were shot and killed in the area of 3rd and F streets in Northwest which is near the museum, an FBI field office and the U.S. attorney's office, according to the reports.
"Two Israeli Embassy staff were senselessly killed tonight near the Jewish Museum in Washington DC," Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote in a post on X.
FBI Director Kash Patel said he and his team had been briefed on the shooting.
"While we're working with [Metropolitan Police Department] to respond and learn more, in the immediate, please pray for the victims and their families," he wrote on X.
Danny Danon, Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, called the shooting "a depraved act of anti-Semitic terrorism."
"Harming diplomats and the Jewish community is crossing a red line," Danon said in a post on X. "We are confident that the US authorities will take strong action against those responsible for this criminal act."
Attorney General Pam Bondi and U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro were on the scene of the shooting.
The Metropolitan Police Department declined to comment, saying a press conference would be held shortly. —Reuters
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
GMA Network
a day ago
- GMA Network
Senate approves anti-POGO bill on final reading
Senate Bill 2868, also known as the Anti-POGO Act of 2025, received 23 affirmative votes, zero negative votes, and zero abstentions. The Senate on Monday approved on third and final reading a bill on Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) in the country. Senate Bill 2868, also known as the Anti-POGO Act of 2025, received 23 affirmative votes, zero negative votes, and zero abstentions. It was authored by Senators Sherwin Gatchalian, Bong Go, Raffy Tulfo, Pia Cayetano, Grace Poe, and Risa Hontiveros. The bill declared offshore gaming operations in the Philippines as unlawful. It was approved on second reading last June 4. Under the bill, violators may face imprisonment of not less than six years to up to 12 years and be fined at least P300,000. The bill also states that if the violator is a public official or employee, the maximum penalty will be imposed. In 2024, authorities discovered some POGO hubs engaging in human trafficking and physical and sexual abuse. This includes POGO hubs in Bambam, Tarlac, and Porac, Pampanga. This led to the arrest of dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo, also identified as Guo Hua Ping, for alleged involvement in the illegal activities of a POGO hub in her town. –NB, GMA Integrated News
GMA Network
a day ago
- GMA Network
Israeli forces seize Gaza aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg, ministry says
A drone view shows the Gaza-bound aid ship Madleen, organized by the international NGO Freedom Flotilla Coalition, anchored off the coast of Catania, Italy, on June 1, 2025. REUTERS/Danilo Arnone/File Photo JERUSALEM - Israeli forces have taken command of a charity vessel that had tried to break a naval blockade of the Gaza Strip and the boat with its crew of 12 including activist Greta Thunberg is now heading to a port in Israel, officials said on Sunday. The British-flagged yacht Madleen, which is operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), was aiming to deliver a symbolic amount of aid to Gaza later on Monday and raise international awareness of the humanitarian crisis there. However, the boat was boarded during the night before it could reach shore, the FFC said on its Telegram account. The Israeli Foreign Ministry later confirmed that it was under Israeli control. "The 'selfie yacht' of the 'celebrities' is safely making its way to the shores of Israel. The passengers are expected to return to their home countries," the ministry wrote on X. All passengers were safe and unharmed, the ministry later added. "They were provided with sandwiches and water. The show is over." Among the 12-strong crew are Swedish climate campaigner Thunberg and Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament. "The crew of the Freedom Flotilla was arrested by the Israeli army in international waters around 2 a.m.," Hassan posted on X. A photograph showed the crew seated on the boat, all wearing life jackets, with their hands in the air. The yacht is carrying a small shipment of humanitarian aid, including rice and baby formula. The Foreign Ministry said it would be taken to Gaza. "The tiny amount of aid that was on the yacht and not consumed by the 'celebrities' will be transferred to Gaza through real humanitarian channels," it wrote. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz ordered the military on Sunday to prevent the Madleen from reaching Gaza, calling the mission a propaganda effort in support of Hamas. Israel imposed a naval blockade on the coastal enclave after Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007. The blockade has remained in place through multiple conflicts, including the current war, which began after a Hamas-led assault on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, that killed more than 1,200 people, according to an Israeli tally. Gaza's health ministry says over 54,000 Palestinians have been killed since the start of Israel's military campaign. The United Nations has warned that most of Gaza's more than 2 million residents are facing famine. The Israeli government says the blockade is essential to prevent weapons from reaching Hamas. The United Nations' special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, has supported the FFC operation and on Sunday, urged other boats to challenge the Gaza blockade. "Madleen's journey may have ended, but the mission isn't over. Every Mediterranean port must send boats with aid & solidarity to Gaza," she wrote on X. -Reuters
GMA Network
2 days ago
- GMA Network
Israel says it will block Gaza-bound aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg
Activist Greta Thunberg (right) and crew stand aboard the aid ship Madleen, which left the Italian port of Catania on June 1 to travel to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid, in this picture released on June 2, 2025 on social media. Freedom Flotilla Coalition/ via REUTERS JERUSALEM, Undefined — Israel's defense minister on Sunday ordered the military to block an aid boat headed for Gaza with 12 activists on board, including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg. "I have instructed the military to prevent the Madleen flotilla from reaching Gaza," Israel Katz said in a statement from his office. "To Greta the antisemite and her companions, Hamas propaganda mouthpieces, I say clearly: turn back because you will not reach Gaza," Katz said. The organizers of the Madleen's voyage said Saturday they had reached Egyptian waters and were nearing Gaza, where the war between Israel and Hamas has entered its 21st month. The Madleen, a sailing boat operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, left Italy on June 1 with the stated aim of delivering humanitarian aid and breaking the Israeli blockade on the Palestinian territory. "Israel will not allow anyone to break the naval blockade of Gaza, which is aimed at preventing weapons from reaching Hamas—a murderous terrorist group holding our hostages and committing war crimes," Katz said. "Israel will act against any attempt to break the blockade or support terror groups—by sea, air or land," he added. The war was sparked by Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official figures. On Sunday, the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said that the overall toll for the Gaza war had reached 54,880, the majority civilians. The UN considers these figures reliable. — Agence France-Presse
