(Adnkronos) – Italy remains committed to fighting anti-Semitism and “all forms of hatred and discrimination”, foreign minister Antonio Tajani said in a statement condemning the “vile” gun attack in the US capital Washington DC that killed two Israeli embassy employees late on Wednesday.
“Italy reaffirms its commitment to combatting all forms of hatred and discrimination,” read the statement issued on Thursday.
“The fight against anti-Semitism is an absolute priority: for me personally, for the government, and for the entire country,” the statement went on.
Italy “has always been committed to promoting a culture of respect and peaceful coexistence through education, remembrance, and the firm defence of human rights,” the statement continued.
Tajani “strongly condemned the vile attack in Washington in which two employees of the Israeli Embassy were (fatally) injured, read the statement.
Tajani expressed his solidarity with Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Saar and the families of the victims of the attack, said the statement.
“Anti-Semitic violence, born of hatred against Jews, is unacceptable and must be stopped. We stand with Israel and its citizens at this time,” said Tajani.
A 30-year-old suspect, Elias Rodriguez from Chicago, was arrested at the scene of the attack outside the Capital Jewish Museum, where the two victims, named as Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, had just attended an event.
