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How the Media Blurred the Motive in Slaying of Israeli Embassy Workers in D.C.
Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim who were shot and killed as they left an event at the Capital Jewish Museum, pose for a picture at an unknown location, in this handout image released by Embassy of Israel to the U.S. on May 22, 2025. Embassy of Israel to the USA via X/Handout via REUTERS
It’s no coincidence that two Israeli embassy staffers attending an American Jewish Committee (AJC) event were murdered outside Washington DC’s Jewish museum by a man shouting “free, free Palestine” as he was taken into police custody.
The motive was clear, but the media dropped the ball. Several headlines suggested that Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim were killed in a random shooting when this was anything but.
Reuters, for one, portrayed the horrific incident as a mere city crime that took an unfortunate turn. They couldn’t bring themselves to state outright in the headline that it was a specifically motivated and targeted attack on Jews at a Jewish event.
Hey, @Reuters, it’s an antisemitic attack on a specifically Jewish target, not a mugging gone wrong.
The gunman shot dead Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim outside the Jewish Museum. pic.twitter.com/ixWoAPOaoa
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) May 22, 2025
TheBBC was no different — whitewashing, downplaying, and denying the antisemitic and anti-Israel motive for the attack — shameful, given the perpetrator clearly shouted a “free Palestine” slogan on video.
In a later “analysis,” the BBC’s Yolande Knell even went so far as to effectively blame the murders on Israel’s conduct during its ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza.
What’s this? Just @BBCNews “analysis” effectively blaming Israel’s conduct for the murder of its two embassy staff.
Criticism, however harsh, doesn’t lead to murder. Incitement and hate do.
Disgusting that @YolandeKnell, in justifying evil, can’t tell the difference. pic.twitter.com/3X2QPVH34d
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) May 22, 2025
The Daily Beast took its own liberties, making a predictable connection and justification for the brutal killing of the two Israeli embassy staffers to the unfortunate incident in Jenin on Wednesday, where the IDF fired warning shots in the air in the vicinity of a delegation of foreign diplomats who were visiting the area.
There is absolutely nothing that can justify antisemitic violence; the connection to the Jenin incident is beyond a reach.
Is @thedailybeast actually suggesting the murders of Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim outside the Jewish Museum in Washington DC are a result of an earlier incident in Jenin?
Let’s be clear: There is no justification for their brutal killings. pic.twitter.com/IjCTVZLqRM
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) May 22, 2025
An Anti-Defamation League 2024 report found that antisemitic violence spiked 360% in the US in the year following the brutal Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023. As this disturbing trend continues, it’s wrong for the media to play dumb.
In fact, the last thing that one of the victims, Israeli embassy worker Yaron Lischinsky, reposted on his X account was a tweet that reflects the dangerous consequences of irresponsible reporting, blood libels, and disinformation. Ironically, and tragically, he became a victim himself.
May Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky’s memories be a blessing, and serve as a reminder that hatred and violence painted as virtue do not lead to peace.
The author is a contributor to HonestReporting, a Jerusalem-based media watchdog with a focus on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias — where a version of this article first appeared.
The post How the Media Blurred the Motive in Slaying of Israeli Embassy Workers in D.C. first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.