Suspect in Israeli embassy murders faces hate crime charges

The man accused of fatally shooting two Israeli embassy workers in May will face a swath of new charges, according to a federal indictment unsealed on Wednesday. Suspected shooter Elias Rodriguez will face two counts of hate crime, one count of murdering a foreign official, two counts of premeditated murder, and four more assault and firearms charges. Embassy workers Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky were gunned down in Washington, D.C., while leaving an event sponsored by the American Jewish Committee.

What other details does the indictment give about the shooting? The indictment alleged that Rodriguez traveled from Chicago to Washington with the semiautomatic handgun used in the attack. Rodriguez purchased a ticket to the Young Diplomats Reception hosted at the Capital Jewish Museum, where the shooting took place, according to the indictment. The alleged attacker fired 20 shots at Milgrim and Lischinsky, who had just left the reception. Rodriguez allegedly yelled “Free Palestine” during the shooting, then entered the museum reception area with a red keffiyeh and yelled, “I did it for Palestine,” the indictment continued.

The indictment also documented a string of anti-Jewish social media activity from Rodriguez, starting on Jan. 1, 2024, when he posted “Happy New Year, Death To Israel.” The alleged attacker also drafted a document a day before the attack, accusing Israel of committing atrocities against the Palestinian people.

Dig deeper: Read Elizabeth Russell’s report on embassy staffer Milgrim’s Kansas funeral.