Omar Avoids Questions on D.C. Shooting
Rep. Ilhan Omar from Minnesota chose not to answer reporters’ questions about the recent shooting in Washington, D.C., which resulted in the deaths of two Israeli embassy staff members as they left the Capital Jewish Museum on Wednesday night.
“I’m going for now,” Omar, who is the first Somali-American elected to Congress, told reporters on Thursday. A spokesman for her office has not yet replied to comments from the media.
Later, Omar expressed her feelings about the shooting, stating that violence is unacceptable in the United States. “I was appalled by the fatal shooting at the Capital Jewish Museum last night,” she wrote in a post on X. “I hold the victims and their families in my thoughts and prayers. Violence has no place in our country.”
The victims, Jaron Lisinsky and Sarah Milgrim, had just attended an event at the museum when they were shot. According to the Israeli Embassy, they were planning to get engaged soon.
Authorities have identified a 30-year-old man from Chicago, Elias Rodriguez, as a suspect in the incident.
Omar, known for her advocacy for the Palestinian cause, has faced scrutiny for her remarks regarding the Jewish community, including a statement made at Columbia University in April 2024 about the safety of Jewish children.
Interestingly, Omar’s daughter, Isla Hirsi, was also arrested during a pro-Palestinian protest at Columbia during the same month.
Lisinski, who was born in Israel and grew up in Germany, came from a mixed background with a Jewish father and a Christian mother. Milgrim was an American employee at the Israeli Embassy.
Following the attack, prominent figures, including former President Donald Trump, condemned it as an anti-Semitic act. “These horrifying D.C. murders, clearly based on anti-Semitism, must now be over!” he stated in a post on Truth Social, adding his condolences to the victims’ families and expressing his sadness over such events occurring.
Additionally, Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasized that those responsible would face justice. He stated, “We condemn the murder of two staff members from the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., in the strongest possible terms.”
