The two young people gunned down outside a Jewish museum in D.C. Wednesday night were young Israeli Embassy staffers who were soon to be engaged.
Israel identified the victims as Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, without giving their ages. They were leaving a young diplomats’ event at the Capital Jewish Museum that was meant to “foster unity and celebrate Jewish heritage” when they were killed.
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WATCH HERELischinsky had bought an engagement ring and was just days away from proposing to Milgrim on a planned trip to Jerusalem, Israeli Ambassador Yechiel Leiter said.
Here’s what we know so far about the victims:
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SIGN UP Yaron Lischinsky
Lischinsky worked as a research assistant at the Israeli Embassy, where he was responsible for tasks including keeping its political department up to date on “important events and trends happening in the Middle East & North Africa,” according to his LinkedIn profile.
Lischinsky moved to Israel from Germany at age 16, according to his profile, and he said he had “the privilege of calling both Jerusalem and Nuremberg my home.”
Ron Prosor, a veteran Israeli diplomat, said Lischinsky was a student of his at an Israeli university. He said Lischinsky was Christian, “a true lover of Israel” who had served in the military “and chose to dedicate his life to the state of Israel.”
In Germany, the German-Israeli Society — a group that promotes bilateral relations and solidarity with Israel — said Lischinsky grew up partly in Bavaria and spoke fluent German.
It said he was a founding member of the youth forum of the Israeli-German Society, the group’s counterpart in Israel, and took a job at the Israeli Embassy in Washington in 2022. It said that he was also a passionate photographer.
On his LinkedIn profile, Lischinsky said he advocated for interfaith dialogue and intercultural understanding. He said that he was an “ardent believer” in deepening Israel’s ties with the Arab world through the U.S.-brokered agreements known as the Abraham Accords.
On Instagram, his bio included a yellow ribbon symbolizing the struggle to free the hostages taken by Hamas during its Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel that ignited the war in the Gaza Strip.
He earned a master’s degree in government, diplomacy and strategy from Reichman University near Tel Aviv.
Sarah Milgrim
Milgrim worked in the Israeli Embassy’s department of public diplomacy and organized visits and missions to Israel. She was an American citizen, according to Israel's former ambassador to the U.S., Mike Herzog.
In her LinkedIn bio, she said her passion “lies at the intersection of peacebuilding, religious engagement, and environmental work.”
She said as a Jewish educator, she facilitated “insightful discussions on geopolitics in Israel and Palestine.” She said that she worked in Tel Aviv for Tech2Peace, an organization that provides “high-tech and entrepreneurial training alongside conflict dialogue to young Palestinians and Israelis.”
She had a certificate in religious engagement and peacebuilding from the United States Institute of Peace, an organization funded by the U.S. Congress that promotes conflict resolution.
She graduated from the University of Kansas in 2021 with a bachelor's degree in environmental studies with a minor in anthropology and also graduated with a master's in international affairs from American University in 2023.
A friend and colleague of Milgrim remembered her as "a young, passionate, and brilliant environmental advocate" who was "deeply committed to building a more peaceful and sustainable world."
"Just eight days ago, I spoke with her about an upcoming climate initiative. She was full of energy and optimism," Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi, co-founder of the Mizrahi Family Charitable Fund, wrote in an email addressed to friends and colleagues. "Recently, I attended an Earth Day event she organized, which featured Israeli environmental nonprofit leaders. Her leadership shone through—bright, compassionate, and determined."
Laszlo Mizrahi said Milgrim "embodied the Jewish value of tikkun olam —repairing the world."
"May their memories be a blessing and a call to action — for peace, for justice, and for protecting life on this planet," she said.
Milgrim’s Instagram bio also had a yellow ribbon, as well as a passage from Deuteronomy, “Justice, justice you shall pursue,” written in Hebrew.
NBC News' Megan Lebowitz and NBC Washington's Andrea Swalec contributed to this report.
