Washington DC [US], May 22 (HBTV): Two staff members from the Israeli Embassy were shot and killed on Wednesday night outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington DC, officials confirmed, according to local media reports.

‘Two Israeli Embassy staff were senselessly killed tonight near the Jewish Museum in Washington DC,’ US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem posted on the social media platform X.

Law enforcement sources told CNN that the victims were shot as they exited an event at the museum. The shooting occurred around 9:15 p.m. local time near an FBI office building on F Street, the report stated.

An embassy spokesperson told CNN that the Israeli ambassador was not involved in the incident and was not present at the location during the shooting.

US Attorney General Pam Bondi said via social media that she and acting US Attorney for DC Jeanine Pirro were on the scene following the shooting. According to CBS News, two individuals familiar with the investigation confirmed that a suspect believed to be the shooter is in custody. Two sources further stated that the suspect shouted ‘free Palestine’ prior to opening fire.

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee called the incident a ‘horrific act of terror’ in a post on X, noting that AG Pam Bondi had informed him of the event while at the scene.

Danny Danon, Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, wrote in a social media post that the shooting occurred outside the event at the Jewish Museum. He also claimed that two other embassy employees were wounded, although authorities have not confirmed additional injuries.

‘The fatal shooting that took place outside the event that took place at the Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. is a depraved act of anti-Semitic terrorism. Harming the Jewish community is crossing a red line. We are confident that the US authorities will take strong action against those responsible for this criminal act. Israel will continue to act resolutely to protect its citizens and representatives – everywhere in the world,’ Danon wrote on X.

FBI spokesperson Ben Williamson said in a post that FBI personnel were assisting the Metropolitan Police Department at the scene. The FBI Washington Field Office confirmed there was ‘no ongoing threat to public safety’.

Tal Naim Cohen, spokesperson for the Israeli embassy in Washington, said: ‘Two staff members of the Israeli embassy were shot this evening at close range while attending a Jewish event at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington DC. We have full faith in law enforcement authorities on both the local and federal levels to apprehend the shooter and protect Israel’s representatives and Jewish communities throughout the United States.’

More details are awaited.

(ANI)