Two individuals were fatally shot outside the Capital Jewish Museum on Wednesday after attending the American Jewish Committee’s annual Young Diplomats Reception.
Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky were both staffers with the Israeli Embassy. Lischinsky was purportedly preparing to propose to Milgrim in Jerusalem in the coming weeks.
Both advocates for international service and the U.S.-Israeli relationship, they were well known by the Israeli-American political community in the city.
Sarah Milgrim
Milgrim, 26, worked in the Israeli Embassy’s Department of Public Diplomacy after being hired in November 2023, according to her LinkedIn.
Prior to joining the staff, the United States Institute of Peace granted her a certificate in Religious Engagement in Peacebuilding and Skills for Effective Negotiations.
Milgrim was a world traveler who studied conflict on the ground in countries across the globe. She received a Master’s from American University and an undergraduate degree from the University of Kansas.
In 2020, she joined the Tate Institute of Social Sciences on a trip to Mumbai, India, to learn how social, economic and political systems stratify social welfare by visiting several social service agencies.
Milgrim was slated to travel to Jerusalem next week, where Lischinsky planned to propose to her.
“Yaron and Sarah were our friends and colleagues. They were in the prime of their lives,” the Israeli Embassy said in a statement following her death.
“The entire embassy staff [is] heartbroken and devastated by their murder. No words can express the depth of our grief and horror at this devastating loss,” it added.
Yaron Lischinsky
Yaron Lischinsky, 30, served as a political analyst for the Israel Foreign Ministry at the Embassy of Israel, according to his LinkedIn.
He openly supported aid disbursement to residents in Gaza amid the conflict while championing Israeli efforts to bring an end to Hamas. Lischinsky served as a soldier in the Israeli Defense Forces for three years before taking up research positions based in Israel.
“This week @IsraelinUSA marked Israel’s 77th Independence Day, a day filled with deep personal and national meaning,” Lischinsky wrote in a celebratory social media post in early May.
“On Independence Day, we celebrate the miracle of the Jewish people returning to their ancestral homeland after 2000 years,” he added.
Lischinsky obtained his Bachelor’s degree in International Relations and Asian Studies from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, in addition to a master’s degree from Reichman University in government, diplomacy and strategy.
