The two victims of the shooting outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington DC on Wednesday night have been identified as Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, two employees of the Israeli embassy.
The country’s ambassador to the US, Yechiel Leiter, told reporters the two were in a relationship and Lischinsky had “purchased a ring this week with the intention of proposing to his girlfriend next week in Jerusalem”.
Tal Naim Cohen, a spokesperson for the embassy, said in a social media post addressed to the pair that “words cannot begin to describe the heartbreak and sorrow. Just this morning, we were still laughing together by the coffee corner – and now, all that remains is a picture … Instead of walking you down the aisle, we are walking with you to your graves. What an unbearable loss.”
Yaron Lischinsky Lischinsky was a German-born Israeli who worked in the political department of the Israeli embassy in Washington.
One of his former professors at the Argaman Institute, Ronen Shoval, said Lischinsky was a devout evangelical Christian who had “decided to tie his life to the fate of the Jewish people” and committed his life to Israel. He grew up in Nuremberg but moved to Israel when he was 16, and according to the bio on his Times of Israel blog he had a master’s degree in government, diplomacy and strategy from Reichman University and a bachelor’s in international relations from the Hebrew University.
Speaking to CNN, Nissim Otmazgin, humanities dean at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, said Lischinsky truly “became an Israeli” after moving from Germany.
“In many ways, I think for me, he symbolizes the hope of Israel … Young people – idealistic – that are going abroad, studying about different cultures, and trying to do good for their country. So in this sense, it is not only a personal tragedy, it’s also kind of public tragedy.”
The Israeli ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, said on X that Lischinsky was born in Nuremberg and that he ‘‘was a Christian, a true lover of Israel, served in the IDF, and chose to dedicate his life to the State of Israel and the Zionist cause”.
The German-Israeli Society, paid tribute to Lischinsky as “an open, intelligent and deeply engaged person, whose interest in German-Israeli relations and promoting peaceful coexistence in the Middle East radiated to all those around him”.
Lischinsky had written on his LinkedIn page: “I’m an ardent believer in the vision that was outlined in the Abraham Accords and believe that expanding the circle of peace with our Arab neighbors and pursuing regional cooperation is in the best interest of the state of Israel and the Middle East as a whole. To this end, I advocate for interfaith dialogue and intercultural understanding.”
Lischinsky’s Instagram bio featured a yellow ribbon to mark solidarity with the hostages who were kidnapped during Hamas’s 7 October 2023 attack which prompted Israel’s deadly onslaught on Gaza.
On LinkedIn, Lischinsky marked Israel’s Independence Day a week ago, saying: “We cannot heal until our brothers and sisters who are held captive in Gaza are finally home … We are deeply grateful for the historic alliance with the United States and the great American people, who have stood by our side and have been close partners in these efforts.”
In his final post on social media hours before the attack, Lischinsky had shared a post from Israeli ambassador Amir Weissbrod accusing UN officials of engaging in “blood libel” over claims that 14,000 children faced starvation in Gaza.
In a statement on Thursday, the American Jewish Committee said that Lischinsky had “shared how excited he was to be going back home to spend the Jewish holiday of Shavuot with his family in Israel”.
Sarah Milgrim Milgrim, an American employee of the embassy, organised visits and missions to Israel. She was also a volunteer at Tech2Peace, an advocacy group training young Palestinians and Israelis and promoting dialogue between them.
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Milgrim reportedly grew up in the Kansas City suburb of Overland Park. She held a master’s degree in international studies from American University and another in natural resources and sustainable development from the United Nations University of Peace.
After swastikas were painted at her high school during her senior year, she told a local news station at the time: “I worry about going to my synagogue and now I have to worry about safety at my school and that shouldn’t be a thing.”
In a post on LinkedIn earlier this year, Milgrim uploaded a photo herself, Lischinsky and Isaac Herzog, the president of Israel. “I had the honor of meeting the president of Israel, Isaac Herzog! Thank you for visiting DC and for the work you do to combat anti-semitism while being a voice for unity,” she wrote.
“Yaron and Sarah were our friends and colleagues,” the embassy said in a social media post. “They were in the prime of their lives. This evening, a terrorist shot and killed them as they exited an event at the Capital Jewish Museum in DC.
Tech2Peace, an advocacy group training young Palestinians and Israelis and promoting dialogue between them, said Milgrim was an active volunteer who “brought people together with empathy and purpose”.
“Her dedication to building a better future was evident in everything she did,” it said. “Her voice and spirit will be profoundly missed.”
Meanwhile, the American Jewish Committee said that Milgrim was a “beloved member of the AJC-Mimouna Michael Sachs Fellowship for Emerging Leaders community, where she joined other American, Israeli, French and Moroccan leaders focused on advancing relations in the Middle East and north Africa”.
Speaking to the Jerusalem Post, Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi, founder of the Israel Project non-profit, said Milgrim was a “wonderful leader”.
“She was smart, high energy, kind, and passionate about tikkun olam [fixing the world] … Recently, I was at a climate event she organized; just last week, I was on the phone with her to do more climate work. She was amazing and had a bright future.”
In a statement to the New York Times, Milgrim’s father, Robert Milgrim, said that he got a news alert about the shooting last night as he was getting ready for bed.
“I pretty much already knew,” he said, adding: “I was hoping to be wrong.
“The ironic part is that we were worried for our daughter’s safety in Israel … but she was murdered three days before going,” he continued.