The terrorist who murdered Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim outside the National Museum of American Jewish History in Washington late Wednesday night deliberately targeted them after identifying them as Israeli embassy employees, Israel's ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter said Friday.
According to Leiter, the attacker, Elias Rodriguez, mingled with participants at an event hosted by the American Jewish Committee (AJC) earlier that evening, gathering information on embassy personnel.
After arousing suspicion, Rodriguez was asked to leave. He later lay in wait outside the venue, ambushed the couple at point-blank range and confirmed their deaths, according to the indictment filed against him.
Leiter said local authorities are investigating whether Lischinsky and Milgrim were specifically targeted for their diplomatic roles, rather than being randomly selected. He also revealed that Rodriguez’s girlfriend had previously been arrested for shouting threats at the Israeli consulate in Chicago and that Rodriguez had ties to a socialist organization with “Marxist characteristics.”
After the shooting, Rodriguez reportedly returned to the museum, hid his gun in a plant and sat among the guests. “Some thought he was a witness to the shooting and offered him water,” Leiter said.
“Then he started saying, ‘I did it, I did it,’ and shouted that he did it ‘for Gaza, for Palestine.’” Leiter added that U.S. President Donald Trump expressed shock over the attack and conveyed to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he was “personally handling the matter.”
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However, AJC sources disputed the ambassador’s account, saying Rodriguez was not present during the conference and only entered the museum after the shooting. They confirmed he had registered for the event but was denied entry following a background check.
Questions remain about how he was able to enter the premises after the shooting, despite earlier being barred. AJC said he only spoke with attendees after the attack.
Rodriguez, a 31-year-old Chicago resident, was charged Thursday with premeditated murder. The indictment describes how he approached Lischinsky and Milgrim from behind as they neared a crosswalk, drew a handgun from his waistband and shot them in the back.
Once they fell, he advanced, fired repeatedly and confirmed the kill. Milgrim, who tried to crawl away, was shot again as she attempted to sit up. Surveillance footage showed Rodriguez reloading his weapon before fatally shooting her at close range. He then leaned over the bodies and fired again.
According to eyewitness accounts provided to Ynet, two U.S. citizens who work at the Israeli embassy narrowly escaped. The women had been walking with Lischinsky and Milgrim toward a nearby car when Rodriguez approached.
They said they didn’t recognize him and weren’t sure if he was targeting anyone specific but he shot only Yaron and Sarah at point-blank range. The women fled while hearing their colleagues’ screams behind them.
The indictment also noted that Rodriguez’s actions were cold and calculated. At one point, his gun appeared to jam or run out of bullets. A witness noticed him earlier standing in the rain, trying to light a cigarette while wearing a blue raincoat—a behavior the witness found odd.