A suspect in the Wednesday fatal shootings of two members of the Israeli Embassy near the Jewish museum in Washington, D.C., has been identified as a Chicago man.

Elias Rodriguez, 31, of Chicago was being held for questioning, authorities said Thursday. He was being interviewed early Thursday by D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department as well as the FBI, according to officials.

Authorities alleged he walked into the museum after the shooting, was detained by event security and began chanting, “Free, free Palestine,” officials said.

At an address for him in Albany Park on the Northwest Side, police could be seen blocking the street. By 8:15 a.m., a stream of heavily armed men, the letters FBI inscribed on their backs, were seen leaving the apartment building. More agents remained.

The investigation is being run by federal authorities in Washington, with significant assistance from the FBI Chicago field office and other Chicago-based federal agencies.

Neighbors on the block were startled to open their doors to the sight of federal agents clogging the street. “That’s terrifying,” one woman said when told why they were outside her home.

On Thursday morning, Gov. JB Pritzker said in a statement he was “horrified” to hear of the shooting and disclosed that a member of his staff was attending the event.

“While they are shaken up, they are thankfully safe,” the governor said. “Law enforcement has apprehended the suspected gunman, and although the investigation continues, make no mistake: this was an attack on the Jewish community.”

Pritzker, who is Jewish, has pledged Illinois’ support for Israel while also seeking to distinguish Hamas militants from the Palestinian people, who he has said want peace in the region. But as someone who led the building of the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center in Skokie, Pritzker expressed how the shooting resonated with him and what trauma it has caused.

“Young Jewish people and diplomats came together in a museum built to honor their shared history but then had to flee gun shots and witness the killing of a young couple,” Pritzker said. “Whether it’s gun violence or the rising tide of antisemitism, Americans of all backgrounds have an urgent obligation to stand for peace and reject bigotry in all its forms and in every way possible.”

It was not immediately clear whether Rodriguez had an attorney who could comment on his behalf. A telephone number listed in public records rang unanswered.

Rodriguez had previously posted on X that it was time to bring the war in Gaza home.

Reaction to the shooting continued to pour in from elected officials Thursday.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said in a statement saying “acts of antisemitism, hate and violence have no place in our nation.”

“I strongly condemn the antisemitic attack resulting in the murder of Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky — two Israeli Embassy staff — at the Capital Jewish Museum last night in Washington D.C.,” the statement read. “We send our deepest condolences and pray for the victims, families, colleagues and those who loved them.”

50th Ward Alderperson Debra Silverstein, the only Jewish member of the City Council, said she was “deeply concerned to learn that the attacker came from Chicago.”

She said she spoke with Chicago police Superintendent Larry Snelling and local police commanders, who told her there is “no known threat to our local Jewish community.”

“However, out of an abundance of caution, the 24th District is increasing patrols and putting extra attention on our community,” Silverstein wrote. “I ask for law enforcement to investigate any ties to local extremist groups and to act swiftly to make sure the Jewish community in Chicago is kept safe.”

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, said it was “absolutely devastating” to hear of the shooting. His colleague, Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., called the shooting “absolutely horrifying.”

“My heart goes out to the victims, their families and loved ones and the entire Jewish community in the wake of this inexcusable act of antisemitic violence,” Duckworth said. “Hate should never find safe harbor in America, and we should all be united in the fight against antisemitism.”

Rodriguez was arrested at the scene where two staff members of the Israeli Embassy in Washington were shot and killed Wednesday evening.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar identified the victims as Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim. Lischinsky was a research assistant, and Milgrim organized visits and missions to Israel.

They were leaving an event at the Capital Jewish Museum when the suspect approached a group of four people and opened fire, Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith said at a news conference.

Rodriguez was observed pacing outside the museum before the shooting, walked into the museum after the shooting and was detained by event security, Smith said.

The stunning attack prompted Israeli missions to beef up their security. The shooting comes as Israel has launched another major offensive in the Gaza Strip in a war with Hamas that has heightened tensions across the Middle East and internationally.

“These horrible D.C. killings, based obviously on antisemitism, must end, NOW!” President Donald Trump posted on social media early Thursday. “Hatred and Radicalism have no place in the USA.”

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