Muriel Bowser

Aug. 22 (UPI) — President Donald Trump said Friday that his next targets for crime crackdowns would be Chicago and New York.

“After we do this, we’ll go to another location, and we’ll make it safe also,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

“We’re going to make our cities very, very safe,” he added. “Chicago’s a mess. You have an incompetent mayor [Brandon Johnson]. Grossly incompetent and we’ll straighten that one out probably next. That will be our next one after this. And it won’t even be tough.”

Trump said there were “African American ladies, beautiful ladies,” urging him to intervene in Chicago, a city that has long struggled with gun violence. He indicated his administration would focus next on Chicago and then others, such as New York City.

He threatened using the “regular military,” an escalation from federal takeovers of police and deploying the National Guard.

“I really am honored that the National Guard has done such an incredible job working with the police,” Trump said during a press conference. “And we haven’t had to bring in the regular military, which we’re willing to do if we have to.”

He said he could keep National Guard members in the city “as long as I want” by declaring a national emergency. More than 1,900 National Guard troops from multiple states, including West Virginia, South Carolina, Mississippi, Ohio, Louisiana and Tennessee, as well as the District of Columbia, have been mobilized in the district, according to Joint Task Force-DC.

Trump also took aim at D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and threatened to do more than just seize control of the police force.

“I’m tired of listening to these people say how safe it was before we got here. It was unsafe. It was horrible. And Mayor Bowser better get her act straight, or she won’t be mayor very long because we’ll take it over with the federal government running like it’s supposed to be run,” Trump said.

Trump dismissed polling that showed most city residents disapprove of the deployment of federal troops, calling it “fake news” and claiming that residents of Chicago and cities are begging for a similar crackdown where they live.

It was not immediately clear how a federal crackdown in Chicago would transpire. The District of Columbia is not a part of any state and has restrictions on its ability to self-govern, so the president has the ability to effectively federalize its police force. Other cities and states do not have similar status.

Aug. 14 (UPI) — Dressed in camouflage fatigues, National Guard troops patrolled areas of Washington, D.C., on Thursday, dispatched by President Donald Trump to police what he has called “out of control crime” in the city.

In actuality, crime in the district has fallen in recent years or remained flat. Despite this, Guard soldiers patrolled outside Washington’s main train station and swept homeless encampments ahead of a larger, federal law enforcement operation Thursday night in the city.

The federal effort was underway shortly after 6 p.m. EDT Thursday near a popular homeless encampment outside the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, where most people who often sleep there already had left, The New York Times reported. Most were encouraged to go to homeless shelters.

“The district has worked proactively with homeless residents ahead of these actions to provide services and offers of shelter,” a statement from the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services said. “DC will support the engagements with wraparound services and trash pickup but the planned engagements are otherwise the purview of the federal agencies.”

Some residents in the area pushed back on the troop presence in the 14th St. Northwest corridor. Some heckled the soldiers.

“Go home, fascists,” yelled one protester, and “get off our streets,” the New York Post reported. Others stood at the intersection of the checkpoint and directed drivers to go the other way.

Washington’s Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser walked a fine line between praise and criticism of the Guard troops’ deployment.

She called Trump’s efforts “an authoritarian push,” but earlier in the week expressed loose support for the effort.

“The fact that we have more law enforcement and presence in neighborhoods, that may be positive,” she said.

Other protesters were less measured.

“They are the goons of an openly fascist, openly violent regime,” Ryan Zito, a Washington resident told NBC News.

The planned federal operation targeted 25 sites in and around the district’s northwest quadrant, city council member Charles Allen said.

Allen added that he was unclear about the details of the operation, and that the White House had not been in contact with local officials regarding details.

Trump has said the National Guard presence has expanded to a 24-hour operation and will stretch beyond the originally scheduled 30 days.

The Washington deployment could serve as a template for similar operations in the future. The Washington Post, citing internal documents, said Trump could dispatch as many as 600 National Guard troops to military bases in Alabama and Arizona, and that still others could be deployed elsewhere as part of a “reaction force” to respond to violent civil events and crack down on crime.

Aug. 12 (UPI) — Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser said Tuesday her district should become a state as National Guard troops arrived in the capital.

“It’s times like these when America needs to know that DC should be the 51st state,” Bowser said in an X post, which also contained a clip of her being interviewed on the “Breakfast Club” iHeartMedia radio program.

“We think this action kind of plays into his narrative on cities, about using force, about being tough on crime” Bowser said in regard to President Donald Trump‘s reasons for sending the national guard into the capital and placing city police under federal control.

Despite crime being generally down throughout the district, about 800 soldiers have been stationed in the district after being activated by the U.S. Army on Monday to assist with law enforcement, and Bowser has pledged to work “side by side” with the federal government as Trump’s directive rolls out.

Trump put forth a memorandum Monday titled “Restoring Law and Order in the District of Columbia,” in which he stated that “As President of the United States and Commander in Chief of the District of Columbia National Guard, it is my solemn duty to protect law-abiding citizens from the destructive forces of criminal activity.”

He then mentioned recent high-profile crimes as the impetus behind his decision to mobilize the District of Columbia National Guard and order them to “address the epidemic of crime in our Nation’s capital.”

Trump said in the directive that the mobilization will continue until he determines that “conditions of law and order have been restored in the District of Columbia.”

However, despite that open-ended statement, the troops have already been notified their deployment will last until Sept. 25.

According to the district’s Metropolitan Police Department crime statistics, the level of every categorized offense committed there has dropped since last year, except motor vehicle theft which has a flat change rate of 0%.

Aug. 10 (UPI) — President Donald Trump announced Sunday that he would hold a press conference at the White House on Monday to present his plan to “stop violent crime” in the nation’s capital after the attempted carjacking on former DOGE staffer Edward Coristine, known by the pseudonym Big Balls.

Trump made the announcement on his Truth Social platform after threatening a federal takeover of Washington, D.C., last week. The capital city is in the federal District of Columbia, which lies outside any state boundaries, and its authority rests with Congress.

“It has become one of the most dangerous cities anywhere in the world. It will soon be one of the safest!” Trump said in his post. “Thank you for your attention to this matter.”

Under federal law, Washington, D.C., has an elected mayor and a 13-member council that manages municipal functions, like policing. But Congress has the power to override any local laws passed, control its budget and abolish home rule if deemed necessary.

While large swaths of the city, like federal buildings and the National Mall, are already within federal jurisdiction under the executive branch, only Congress has the ultimate authority over the district.

The primary mechanism that might allow Trump to take federal control of the city through the executive branch would be by federalizing the Metro Police under the oversight of Attorney General Pam Bondi or another federal official, which is allowed under the city’s municipal code.

Trump could also use various federal statutes regarding how federal agencies govern their specific properties to expand their operational zones and security perimeters, or he may try to use the Insurrection Act to allow him to deploy federal troops or the National Guard.

“It is true that we had a terrible spike in crime in 2023, but this is not 2023,” Mayor Muriel Bowser said in an interview with MSNBC on Sunday. “This is 2025, and we’ve done that by working with the community, working with the police, working with our prosecutors, and in fact, working with the federal government.”

In fact, in January, the U.S. Justice Department released a report that showed that violent crime reached a 30-year low in 2024. Data collected by the Metropolitan Police Department showed crime was down 35% from 2023.

Specifically, homicides were down 32% and robberies were down 39%. The data showed that armed carjackings were down 53% and assaults with a dangerous weapon were down 27% when compared with 2023 levels.

Data released this month by Metro Police shows that violent crime rates have continued to fall in 2025, with violent crime down 26% year-over-year. Homicide rates have dropped 12%, sex abuse by 49%, assault with a dangerous weapon by 20% and robbery by 28%.

On top of his concerns for alleged high crime rates in the city, he said that the press conference would focus on new efforts to address the “cleanliness” and “general physical renovation” of the capital.

Trump also hinted at a possible budgetary takeover, lambasting high-cost renovation projects causing “never-ending construction,” but it was not clear what mechanisms might allow him to do so.

“The mayor of D.C., Muriel Bowser, is a good person who has tried, but she has been given many chances, and the crime numbers get worse, and the city only gets dirtier and less attractive,” Trump said. “The American public is not going to put up with it any longer.”

Aug. 6 (UPI) — Two 15-year-olds were arrested in an alleged attack on a former Department of Government Efficiency employee.

Edward Coristine, 19, whose nickname is “Big Balls,” was allegedly surrounded and assaulted by a group of about 10 teens near his car early Sunday morning. He said he shoved his date into the car for her safety and faced the teens, when they began attacking him.

Police patrolling the area saw the event, and they stepped out of their vehicle. The teens fled on foot, but two were caught, identified by Coristine and arrested. They were charged with unarmed carjacking. The two teens were a 15-year-old male and a 15-year-old female. The others are still at large.

Coristine, a software engineer, was one of the most known people associated with the DOGE effort, which attempted to cut government spending and eliminate waste in bureaucracy.

Elon Musk, who worked closely with DOGE before stepping away from his work with the Trump administration, also detailed the attack on X.

“A few days ago, a gang of about a dozen young men tried to assault a woman in her car at night in DC,” Musk said. “A [DOGE] team member saw what was happening, ran to defend her and was severely beaten to the point of concussion, but he saved her.”

Emergency medical services did not transport anybody as part of the incident, D.C. Fire and EMS told CBS News.

The police report also said a black iPhone 16 was stolen.

President Donald Trump renewed threats to have the federal government take over Washington, in response to the incident.

“Crime in Washington, D.C., is totally out of control,” Trump said.

“Local ‘youths’ and gang members … are randomly attacking, mugging, maiming and shooting innocent citizens,” he added, “at the same time knowing that they will be almost immediately released.

“The most recent victim was beaten mercilessly by thugs,” Trump said. “Washington, D.C., must be safe, clean and beautiful for all Americans and, importantly, for the world to see.”

He said the federal government would have no choice but to take control of the capital and “put criminals on notice.”

Local police reported a 35% reduction in crime in 2024, which set a 30-year low, The Hill reported.

This year, reported crimes in Washington are lower than in 2024, which would establish a new 30-year low if the trend continues.

Trump and Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser have met several times since the Nov. 5 election.

The president has said he and the mayor have an amicable relationship, and in a March 28 executive order, created the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force.

That task force includes representatives from several federal agencies and federal law enforcement, who are tasked with cleaning up the city by working with local officials.

Such efforts include removing homeless encampments, supporting law enforcement, removing threats to public safety and streamlining the process for residents to get concealed carry permits for firearms.

Aug. 5 (UPI) — Washington, D.C., would become a federal district and prosecute teens as adults if crime in the nation’s capital does not recede soon, President Donald Trump said on Tuesday.

Youths and gangs in the capital are randomly targeting people for violent crimes due to a lack of law enforcement, Trump said in a Truth Social post.

“Crime in Washington, D.C., is totally out of control,” Trump said.

“Local ‘youths’ and gang members … are randomly attacking, mugging, maiming and shooting innocent citizens,” he added, “at the same time knowing that they will be almost immediately released.”

He said local youths do not fear law enforcement “because they know nothing ever happens to them.”

Trump’s post includes a photo of a young male who is bloodied and sitting on what appears to be an asphalt parking lot.

“The most recent victim was beaten mercilessly by thugs,” Trump said. “Washington, D.C., must be safe, clean and beautiful for all Americans and, importantly, for the world to see.”

He said the federal government would have no choice but to take control of the capital and “put criminals on notice.”

“Perhaps it should have been done a long time ago,” Trump added, “and then this incredible young man, with so many others, would not have had to go through the horrors of violent crime.”

Trump did not reference the recent shooting deaths of a House intern or two Israel Embassy staffers in Washington, D.C.

Despite such shooting deaths and other crimes in the nation’s capital, local police reported a 35% reduction in crime in 2024, which set a 30-year low, The Hill reported.

So far this year, reported crimes in Washington, D.C., are lower than in 2024, which would establish a new 30-year low if the trend continues.

Trump and Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser have met several times since the Nov. 5 election.

The president has said he and the mayor have an amicable relationship, and in a March 28 executive order, created the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force.

That task force includes representatives from several federal agencies and federal law enforcement, who are tasked with cleaning up the city by working with local officials.

Such efforts are to include removing homeless encampments, supporting law enforcement, removing threats to public safety and streamlining the process for residents to obtain concealed carry permits for firearms.

Parks, monuments, structures, roadways and buildings are to be beautified by being restored and graffiti removed from commonly visited local areas, according to the executive order.

The Washington, D.C., mayor’s office did not respond to a UPI request for comment on Tuesday.

June 14 (UPI) — Rain may dampen President Donald Trump‘s plans Saturday night to celebrate the U.S. Army’s 250th birthday with thousands of troops, 150 vehicles and 50 aircraft.

The event also coincides with Trump’s 79th birthday and Flag Day.

A flood watch was in effect for the entire region starting at 2 p.m. and is expected to last until 11 p.m. Highs will be well into the 80s and it will be humid during daytime festivities on the National Mall, WRC-TV reported, while forecasts show showers and thunderstorms starting around 3 to 4 p.m.

Guest entry for the military parade began at 2 p.m.

The one-hour parade, which is expected to draw several hundred thousand people, is scheduled to start moving down Constitution Avenue at 6:30 p.m. near the Lincoln Memorial and then proceed past the White House.

The parade, which saw people assemble along the mile-long route early Saturday morning, will end alongside the National Mall, near the National Museum of African American History and Culture and the Washington Monument.

The parade was originally planned to be smaller, but had been set to start outside the Pentagon and go 2.2 miles.

Trump posted Saturday morning on Truth Social: “OUR GREAT MILITARY PARADE IS ON, RAIN OR SHINE. REMEMBER, A RAINY DAY PARADE BRINGS GOOD LUCK. I’LL SEE YOU ALL IN D.C.”

Trump is scheduled to speak during the parade.

“For two and a half centuries, the men and women of America’s Army have dominated our enemies and protected our freedom at home,” Trump said in a video posted to Truth Social in early June. “This parade salutes our soldiers’ remarkable strength and unbeatable spirit. You won’t want to miss it. Just don’t miss this one. It’s going to be good.”

The parade will be followed by the Army Golden Knights’ parachute demonstration and a concert at the Ellipse. A fireworks show will occur at 9:45 p.m., the U.S. Army said.

Earlier in the day, a birthday wreath was laid at Arlington National Cemetery and there was a fitness event at the National Mall. The Birthday Festival there will include opportunities to meet with Medal of Honor recipients, astronauts and soldiers.

All of the activities are free and there is tight security.

Matt McCool, the U.S. Secret Service agent in charge of the Washington field office, said “thousands of agents, officers and specialists from across the country” are deployed. People attending the parade or a related festival will be required to go through checkpoints with magnetometers.

The big show will be the military equipment during the parade, officials have said, which includes 140,000-pound Abrams tanks, as well as 6,600 soldiers wearing uniforms representing every U.S. conflict dating back to the Revolutionary War and aircraft flying overhead

About 1,800 Soldiers from III Armored Corps in Fort Cavazos will participate.

“The Army’s 250th birthday is a once-in-a-lifetime event,” Col. Kamil Sztalkoper, a spokesperson for the III Armored Corps, said earlier this week as a train carrying tanks left Fort Cavazos, Texas.

“This is a chance to see our soldiers, our leaders and the world-class force on full display in our nation’s capital. We look forward to being a part of history,” he said.

On June 14, 1775, the Second Continental Congress voted to establish the Continental Army, more than a year before the Declaration of Independence.

D.C. officials have expressed concern about potential road damage from the vehicles, including 60-ton tanks. While the Army has installed thick steel plates at key turns, the straightaway on Constitution Avenue remains unprotected.

Road closures and security measures will make it difficult to drive around the area, and Mayor Muriel Bowser said potential damage could cost millions but the Army has pledged to cover the costs.

The Federal Aviation Administration is also clearing the airspace in the area, preventing all arrivals and departures at Reagan National Airport “during the peak of the celebration,” the agency said. The stoppage is expected affect about 116 flights, a senior government official told NBC News.

The last major military parade, the National Victory Celebration, was on June 8, 1991, to celebrate the end of the Gulf War, though Trump has noted that other countries regularly celebrate the end of World War II.

“We won the war, and we’re the only country that didn’t celebrate it, and we’re going to be celebrating big on Saturday,” he said.

Trump said he came up with the idea after watching the French Bastille Day military parade in France in 2017.

Pentagon personnel at the time convinced him not to move forward with the plan and, instead, in 2019, he celebrated Independence Day with a speech at the Lincoln Memorial with military aircraft flyovers and Bradley tanks stationed near the Lincoln Memorial.

“Humans are drawn to pageantry,” Barbara Perry, a presidential historian at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center, told NBC News.

“It’s usually about the personnel. Now we know that this president has political issues all around the world, and wanting to show off the might. And if he views it, as in his first term, ‘his generals,’ and, if he views it as ‘his military,’ then you tie it to your personal special day of your birthday- – that’s what’s different.”

On Friday night, U.S. Capitol Police arrested 60 people for unlawful demonstration, the agency said.

Military veterans and their families had gathered in front of the Supreme Court, demanding that taxpayer dollars for Saturday’s military parade and for troops in Los Angeles should be used for housing, healthcare and food.

“If there’s any protester that wants to come out, they will be met with very big force. I haven’t even heard about a protest, but you know, this is people that hate our country, but they will be met with very heavy force,” Trump told reporters earlier this week.

“It will be a parade like we haven’t had in many, many decades here,” he said. “And it’s a celebration of our country. It’s a celebration of the Army, actually.”

About 2,000 protests are planned nationwide against Trump spending millions on the parade, as well as his policies. No organized “No King” protests are planned in the nation’s capital.

But there was an event demonstrating against the military events by RefuseFascism on Saturday afternoon. They led a rally and marched outside the White House.

Trump “is forging and putting on display today a military loyal, not to the Constitution, not to the rule of law, but to Trump personally with all the White supremacy,” one of the chief organizers, Sunsara Taylor, told CNN.

A 20-year Navy veteran also told CNN: “The parade don’t belong here – you see that in dictatorships, okay? You see that in North Korea, you see that in China, you see that in Russia. This is we the people of the United States of America,”

June 9 (UPI) — Preparations are still underway for a military parade Saturday in Washington, D.C., celebrating the Army’s 250th anniversary.

The event is projected to cost $45 million and possibly higher because of possible road damage that could happen because of heavy military equipment.

Construction workers this week have been erecting a stage along Constitution Avenue near the White House. Steel plates have been embedded in the asphalt to protect damage from 140,000-pound Abrams tanks.

Saturday also is Flag Day and President Donald Trump‘s 79th birthday.

The parade will run from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., followed by the Army Golden Knights’ parachute demonstration and a concert at the Ellipse. A fireworks show will occur at 9:45 p.m., the U.S. Army said.

All of the activities are free. Registration for the festival and parade is available through America250’s event registration portal.

The parade will include 6,600 soldiers, 150 vehicles and 50 aircraft going from the Pentagon to the Washington Monument. Around 200,000 spectators are expected to watch the parade, including Army personnel wearing uniforms representing every U.S. conflict dating back to the Revolutionary War.

About 1,800 Soldiers from III Armored Corps in Fort Cavazos will participate.

This week, vehicles have been arriving by train from Texas.

“The Army’s 250th birthday is a once-in-a-lifetime event,” Col. Kamil Sztalkoper, a spokesperson for the III Armored Corps, said earlier this week as one of the trains left Fort Cavazos, Texas. “This is a chance to see our soldiers, our leaders and the world-class force on full display in our nation’s capital. We look forward to being a part of history.”

A list and photos of military equipment is available on the Army website.

The parade starts at 23rd Street and Constitution Avenue North and travels down Constitution Avenue along the National Mall, ending at 15th Street and Constitution Avenue Northwest, the U.S. Army said.

WTOP reported there will be several road closures.

D.C. officials have expressed concern about potential road damage from the vehicles, including 60-ton tanks.

Army has installed thick steel plates at key turns but straightaway on Constitution Avenue remain unprotected.

Mayor Muriel Bowser said potential damage could cost millions but the Army has pledged to cover the costs.

During his first presidency, President Trump asked the Pentagon to organize a military parade in the capital after he watched the French Bastille Day military parade in France in 2017. But Pentagon personnel convinced him then not to move forward with plans.

Instead in 2019, he celebrated Independence Day with a speech at the Lincoln Memorial with military planes’ flyovers. Two Bradley fighting vehicles also were at the Lincoln Memorial.

“I think it’s time for us to celebrate a little bit,” Trump said Monday. “You know we’ve had a lot of victories.”

The White House estimates the parade will cost between $25 million and $45 million.

Besides the parade, concert and fireworks, there will be a fitness competition at 9:30 a.m. and a festival beginning at 11 a.m. that includes an NFL kids zone and military demonstrations, along with other activities.

Flights to and from Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Va., will be suspended for 90 minutes during the military parade.

June 9 (UPI) — Preparations are underway for a military parade Saturday in Washington, D.C., celebrating the Army’s 250th anniversary that is projected to cost $45 million and possibly higher because of possible road damage.

Construction workers are erecting a stage along Constitution Avenue near the White House. Steel plates have been embedded in the asphalt to protect damage from 140,000-pound Abrams tanks.

Saturday also is Flag Day and President Donald Trump‘s 79th birthday.

The parade will run from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., followed by the Army Golden Knights’ parachute demonstration and a concert at the Ellipse. A fireworks show will occur at 9:45 p.m., the U.S. Army said.

All of the activities are free. Registration for the festival and parade is available through America250’s event registration portal.

The parade will include 6,600 soldiers, 150 vehicles and 50 aircraft going from the Pentagon to the Washington Monument. Around 200,000 spectators are expected to watch the parade, including Army personnel wearing uniforms representing every U.S. conflict dating back to the Revolutionary War.

About 1,800 Soldiers from III Armored Corps in Fort Cavazos will participate.

Vehicles have been arriving by train from Texas.

“The Army’s 250th birthday is a once-in-a-lifetime event,” Col. Kamil Sztalkoper, a spokesperson for the III Armored Corps, said as one of the trains left Fort Cavazos, Texas. “This is a chance to see our soldiers, our leaders and the world-class force on full display in our nation’s capital. We look forward to being a part of history.”

A list and photos of military equipment is available on the Army website.

The parade starts at 23rd Street and Constitution Avenue North and travels down Constitution Avenue along the National Mall, ending at 15th Street and Constitution Avenue Northwest, the U.S. Army said.

WTOP reported there will be several road closures.

D.C. officials have expressed concern about potential road damage from the vehicles, including 60-ton tanks.

Army has installed thick steel plates at key turns but straightaway on Constitution Avenue remain unprotected.

Mayor Muriel Bowser said potential damage could cost millions but the Army has pledged to cover the costs.

During his first presidency, President Trump asked the Pentagon to organize a military parade in the capital after he watched the French Bastille Day military parade in France in 2017. But Pentagon personnel convinced him then not to move forward with plans.

Instead in 2019, he celebrated Independence Day with a speech at the Lincoln Memorial with military planes’ flyovers. Two Bradley fighting vehicles also were at the Lincoln Memorial.

“I think it’s time for us to celebrate a little bit,” Trump said Monday. “You know we’ve had a lot of victories.”

The White House estimates the parade will cost between $25 million and $45 million.

Besides the parade, concert and fireworks, there will be a fitness competition at 9:30 a.m. and a festival beginning at 11 a.m. that includes an NFL kids zone and military demonstrations, along with other activities.

Flights to and from Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Va., will be suspended for 90 minutes during the military parade.

May 21 (UPI) — Two Israeli Embassy staff members were shot dead Wednesday night outside Washington’s Capital Jewish Museum where an event was being hosted by the American Jewish Committee, officials and authorities said.

“Two Israeli Embassy staff were senselessly killed tonight near the Jewish Museum in Washington DC,” Department of Home Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on X.

Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith told reporters in a press conference that one person, the suspected shooter from Chicago, is in custody.

Police were notified of shots fired at 9:08 p.m. EDT outside the museum near the intersection of 3rd and F. Street Northwest.

Officers found two people, a man and a woman later identified as Israeli embassy staff, unresponsive and suffering from gunshot wounds, injuries that they succumbed to, she said.

“A young man purchased a ring this week with the intention of proposing to his girlfriend next week in Jerusalem,” Yechiel Leiter, the Israeli ambassador to the U.S., said. “They were a beautiful couple.”

Smith said the suspect was seen pacing back and forth outside the museum before approaching a group of four people, pulling out a handgun and shooting both victims.

Event security detained the suspect who then entered the museum, she said.

“The suspect chanted, ‘Free, free Palestine’ while in custody,” she said, identifying the suspect at 30-year-old Elias Rodriguez.

Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser suggested the attack Was terrorism.

“We will not tolerate this violence or hate in our city,” she said. “We will not tolerate any acts of terrorism, and we’re going to stand together as a community in the coming days and weeks to send a clear message that we will not tolerate anti-Semitism.”

This is a developing story.