Two employees of the Israeli Embassy in Washington were killed, officials said. A suspect was in custody.
A gunman shot and killed two employees of the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday night outside an event at the Capital Jewish Museum, officials said.
The shooter, who was taken into custody shortly after the killings, shouted pro-Palestinian slogans after he was detained, officials said.
“Early indicators are that this is an act of targeted violence,” Dan Bongino, the deputy director of the F.B.I., wrote on social media.
The shooting happened just after 9 p.m. on a street outside the Capital Jewish Museum, where the American Jewish Committee was hosting a reception for young diplomats. The museum is in the heart of official Washington, among federal buildings, embassies and other museums. The U.S. Capitol, the F.B.I.’s Washington field office and the headquarters of the Justice Department are all nearby.
A suspect had been seen pacing in front of the museum before the shooting, according to the police. He approached four people who were leaving the event, shooting two of them at close range, and then entered the museum, where he was detained by security officers, the authorities said.