The shooting of Israeli embassy staff in Washington DC highlights the escalating political violence linked to the Gaza conflict. Elias Rodriguez, the shooter, targeted Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim after an event, chanting 'free, free Palestine' during apprehension. This incident is part of a troubling trend of violence affecting Jewish, Arab, and Muslim communities in the U.S., with reports of antisemitism and Islamophobia rising. Experts attribute this violence to a broader culture of populism and political violence, indicating it's not an isolated occurrence but symptomatic of deeper societal issues.
An uptick in violence is not uniquely associated with the war in Gaza. It's a feature of this era of violent populism, said Robert Pape, director of the University of Chicago Project on Security and Threats.
People who commit acts of political violence often believe they will be celebrated by some portion of the public that supports the same goals, he said.
The alleged killer's supposed manifesto nods at this. They think about how they want to be perceived and what they want the news to be saying about them afterwards.
This is a chronic illness in our country, Pape said. This is not a set of isolated events.
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