Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz is ramping up security efforts around Jewish places of worship and gathering in response to the murder of two Israeli Embassy staff members in Washington, D.C.
The Sheriff’s Office announced the extra measures online and urged residents to remain alert and immediately report any suspicious activity to police.
“Due to the horrific targeted act of hate and violence in Washington D.C., we are taking immediate steps to enhance security throughout Miami-Dade County. This means increased patrols around places of worship and cultural institutions, including synagogues, mosques and Jewish schools,” the Office said on X before switching to what appeared to be a personal message from Cordero-Stutz.
“My thoughts and prayers are with all of those affected, and rest assured we will do everything in our power to keep our community safe!”
Miami-Dade is home to one of the nation’s largest Jewish populations. And it’s growing, according to a recent study by the Greater Miami Jewish Federation, which found that roughly 69,700 households there — and about 5% of the population — are Jewish, up 25% from 2014.
On Wednesday evening, a pro-Palestinian activist shot and killed a young couple who were leaving an event at a Jewish museum in Washington. The two victims, Yaron Lischinksy and Sarah Milgrim, were employees of the Israeli Embassy.
As the suspect was taken into custody, he chanted, “Free, free Palestine.”
Ironically, the event was about humanitarian aid and how people can “help both the people in Gaza and the people in Israel,” Yoni Kalin, another attendee, told The Associated Press.
“How can we bring together Muslims and Jews and Christians to work together to actually help innocent people?” Kalin said. “And then here he is just murdering two people in cold blood.”
Several other Miami-Dade officials reacted to the murders.
In an online statement, Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, who is Jewish, said she was “horrified” by the incident.
“My heartfelt condolences are with the families, loved ones and colleagues of the victims,” she said. “We condemn this act of despicable violence targeting a Jewish event that spreads fear and hate among all our communities, and we call for swift justice for those who are responsible.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a Miami native, called it a “brazen act of cowardly, antisemitic violence.”
“We condemn in the strongest possible terms the murder of two staff members from the Embassy of Israel in Washington, D.C. Our prayers are with their loved ones,” he said. “Make no mistake: we will track down those responsible and bring them to justice.”
Miami Rep. Vicki Lopez said “horrific antisemitic violence cannot and will not be tolerated in the United States.”
“I am keeping their families and all of our friends at the Israeli Embassy, where this couple worked, in my thoughts and prayers,” she said. “I am especially praying for my Jewish constituents who must, undoubtedly, be shaken and shocked by this violence act!”
Pro-Palestinian activism — and antisemitic attacks — increased substantially after Hamas entered Israel from Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking some 250 hostages, nearly 60 of whom are still being held.
In the time since, Israel’s devastating campaign in Gaza has killed more than 53,000 people, according to the Hamas-run Palestinian Health Ministry, whose count doesn’t differentiate between combatants and civilians. The fighting has displaced 90% of the territory’s roughly 2 million population, sparked a hunger crisis and obliterated vast swaths of Gaza’s urban landscape.
Within a year of the attack, the U.S. saw more than 10,000 antisemitic incidents, including over 3,000 during anti-Israel rallies, 2,000 at Jewish institutions and at least 1,200 on college campuses, according to the Anti-Defamation League.
The organization’s CEO, Jonathan Greenblatt, said of the Wednesday attack, “When antisemitic rhetoric is normalized, tolerated, or even amplified in our public discourse, it creates an environment where violence against Jews becomes more likely.”