Nariman House
Encyclopedia
The Nariman House renamed as Chabad House
( ), is a five-story landmark in the Colaba
area in southern Mumbai, India. The building was home to a Chabad house
, a Jewish outreach
center run by Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg
, and they have owned the Building since around 2006. The center had an educational center, a synagogue, offered drug prevention services, and a hostel. The building was attacked and six of its occupants, including Rabbi
Gavriel Noach Holtzberg
and his wife, Rivka, who was five months pregnant, were killed during the November 2008 Mumbai attacks
by Pakistan
i Islamic terrorists. Their two-year-old son Moshe survived the attack after being rescued by his Indian nanny, Sandra Samuel
.
, located at 5 Hormusji Street, Colaba
, is one of eight synagogues in Mumbai and has been described as the epicentre of the Jewish community in the city.
This Chabad House
is one of 4,000 such houses in 73 countries, typically run by husband-and-wife couples. In 2003, this Chabad House, the first in Mumbai, was opened by Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg, newly married, and until the November 2008 Mumbai attacks was run by them. It catered to Israelis who are on their way to "party hotspots" such as Goa
and Rajasthan
, in addition to the city's local Jewish community and traveling Jewish businessmen. The Holtzbergs also ran a synagogue and taught Torah classes, in addition to the rabbi conducting weddings for local Jewish couples. It is the Chabad headquarters for Mumbai. The place was open to anyone who wanted a place to pray, eat kosher
food or celebrate Jewish holidays. In a film in 2006, Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg said that anyone who visited the center was welcome. It was not unusual for the Rabbi and his wife to have 30 people for dinner. Gavriel (born 1979, raised in Brooklyn
, New York
) and Rivka (born 1980 in Afula
, Israel
) Holtzberg came to Mumbai in 2003 after completing a mission in Thailand.
Three flights a week bring hundreds of Israeli travelers from Israel to Mumbai and in an interview Holtzberg said he understood the nature of their needs. The young rabbi, who was born in Israel but grew up in Brooklyn, said that they "need relief" from the army
, from work, from real life. He said, "they come here to do everything the army didn't allow them to do. Their shoes had to be polished and tied—here they wear sandals. They had to cut their hair—here they grow their hair long."
In addition, "Jews from all nationalities stopped there—primarily Israelis, but also those from Singapore and other places. It was almost like a second home to them," said Elijah Jacob, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee
's country manager for India. "Our country director used to say it was like a second home to him because of all of the Jews there on Shabbat."
Gavriel also helped with some of the local synagogues. He helped them gather donations, do fund-raising for the synagogue T'feret Israel, in central Mumbai in Jacobs Circle, and helped build a mikvah
there. Also, he was officially a shochet
, making chickens available to the local Jewish community, making challah for the community, and the couple was "available for the community," there to answer Halakhic
principles of the local community.
Chabad officials said they were certain the Mumbai house would reopen, and within hours of news of the Holtzbergs' deaths, young Chabad couples from around the world offered to move to Mumbai to continue their work.
The Chabad house was seized and attacked during the November 2008 Mumbai attacks
. At around 2145 hours (9:45 pm) local time on Wednesday, November 26, four terrorists took advantage of the fact that local security forces were operating in several locations throughout the city. Newscasters were calling it the "final assault", and the building is near the Leopold Cafe
, another building attacked during the strike. However according to a new report Nariman House was actually the main target on November 26 and the rest of the targets were only to amplify the effect.
Initially it was reported that six Israeli Jews were being held hostage. Later Chabad spokesman in Israel Moni Ender said that there were at least eight Israelis inside the house, including Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife Rivka Holtzberg. The rabbi's two-year-old son Moshe was rescued by his nanny, Sandra Samuel
, 44, who had worked for the centre for the previous five years.
The terrorists "would be told by their handlers in Pakistan that the lives of Jews were worth 50 times those of non-Jews." They were tortured very badly.
It was reported that gunmen fired indiscriminately towards the crowd. Late on Thursday evening, State officials in India told the Associated Press that eight hostages had been released from the Chabad House. Later Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said that the eight people seen near Chabad House were not Jewish hostages but local Indians from a home in the same compound. Early Friday morning a large blast was heard at the centre as fighting continued, even though other sources were reporting that the building was under the control of the Indian security forces.
During the siege US Chabad official Rabbi Levi Shemtov talked with one of the terrorists on Holtzberg's cell phone. The FBI and other negotiation experts helped guide him through the process, which included around five phone calls. Having to find an Urdu speaker to speak with him, they were unable to directly speak to any of the hostages, but Shemtov did say he heard the voice of one woman screaming in English, "please help immediately."
Shortly before dawn on Friday, Indian security forces began an attack on the Chabad House that lasted until after sundown. The operation began when 22 NSG
Commandoes rappelled out from an Indian Air Force MI-17
chopper on the roof of the building. NSG Commandoes were in position in the adjacent buildings to provide cover fire to the assault team if needed. Commandoes entered the building from the top and two loud blasts were heard followed by heavy gunfire. The whole operation was watched live on TV as news footage showed troops abseiling
from a helicopter into the building, and soldiers on the ground closing in. Initially it was reported that five hostages were killed at the Chabad House, then six on Friday, eight by Saturday morning and the final number of six on Sunday, when two missing Israelis made contact with the Israeli Foreign Ministry. When the raid ended at sundown everyone inside the building was dead, including the rabbi and his wife. An Indian commando Havaldar Gajendra Singh Bisht was killed during the operation. According to ZAKA members, at least one hostage (Rabbi Holtzberg) might have been killed in the crossfire on Friday when the commandos moved in; this was rejected by government authorities as stories and irresponsible comments. Some of the victims had been bound. Some of the others were killed by the terrorists on Wednesday, and the remainder on Thursday. The rabbi's wife and Orpaz had been killed many hours before Nariman House was retaken. It is also believed that the Rabbi and his pregnant wife were sexually assaulted and their genitals were mutilated before they were killed.
A handout provided by Indian police identified the two terrorists killed at Nariman House as a certain "Nasir" alias Abu Umar, and "Babar Imaran".
- Prime Minister
Ehud Olmert
said, "this terrible sight of Chabad House leaders wrapped in prayer shawls
is shocking. These are pictures that bring us back to the moments in history which we had hoped would never return. It seems that hatred of Jews and Israelis provides motivation for such murderous acts....Last week was marked by among the most serious terrorist attacks India has ever known in Mumbai and which were the product of extremist Islam—brutal and unrestrained, which tries to sow death and destruction wherever it can. There is no doubt that these attacks were designed, inter alia
, to intentionally harm Jewish institutions. The hatred of Jews, the state of Israel, and Jewish symbols is still a factor that spurs and encourages such murderous acts." Foreign Minister
and Acting Prime Minister Tzipi Livni
said: "The fact that the assault happened at a Chabad House symbolizes more than anything the fact that this assault targeted Jews, Israelis. Israel, India and the rest of the free world are positioned in the forefront of the battle against terrorism and extremists."
- Canadian Prime Minister
Stephen Harper
spoke at a Parliament Hill
ceremony organized by Chabad-Lubavitch
to honor the Jewish victims of the terrorist attacks in Mumbai. He expressed condolences over the murder at Chabad's Mumbai center of Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife Rivka. Harper described the killings as "affronts to the values that unite all civilized people" and that anti-Semitism "is a pernicious evil that must be exposed, that must be confronted, that must be repudiated, whenever and wherever it appears. Harper also stated that the quick installment of a new rabbi at the Chabad center in Mumbai as a signal that the Jewish people will "never bow to violence and hatred."
- President-elect
Barack Obama
said, "Michelle
and I want to express our profound sorrow and heartfelt condolences over the terrible tragedy that befell the Chabad Lubavitch community, and indeed the entire Jewish community, last week in Mumbai. We mourn the loss of Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg, and all their Chabad House guests, in these attacks. They were taken from us by terrorists with no regard for human life, and we must remain steadfast in support of efforts to bring the perpetrators of these attacks to justice you mourn and remember those we lost, you should know that so many Americans share your grief and pain. May their memories be a blessing." On December 8, 2008, Admiral Mike Mullen, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, stated in speech to the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs
"The images of two-year-old Moshe Holtzberg soon after his parents were mercilessly struck down in Chabad house should not ever leave us."
- Hillary Rodham Clinton
, Junior Senator
of New York
and announced Secretary of State
said, "My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and families touched by these acts of terror in Mumbai. We still do not know the full measure of this tragedy, which has taken the lives of Indian citizens, Americans, and others who had traveled to Mumbai from around the world. Two New Yorkers, Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and Rivka Holtzberg of Brooklyn are among those who have died, leaving behind their young son. The young couple had traveled from Brooklyn to manage a small Chabad house, welcoming Jews from India and elsewhere to learn, pray, and serve the community. There could be no sharper a reminder, nor a more poignant call to action, than the brutal and heinous violence visited upon the Nariman House and the Holtzberg family, living and working in Mumbai on a mission of peace, scholarship, and spiritual guidance. As those responsible are brought to justice, as we aid and support the victims and their families, as we work to defeat radical extremism and the terror it spawns, let us find strength in knowing that in the face of those who seek to take lives, there are those who seek to give hope and comfort. In the face of those who wish only to destroy, there are individuals like Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and Rivka Holtzberg who travel great distances far from their homes to build a better world."
- David A. Paterson, Governor of New York
said, "Michelle
and I are deeply saddened to learn of the tragic deaths of those whose lives were lost in Mumbai, India due to senseless acts of terror. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all of the victims' families including those of Alan and Naomi Scherr from Virginia and native New Yorker Rabbi Leibish Teitelbaum, as well as the family of Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife, Rivka Holtzberg from Brooklyn, New York. The Holtzbergs moved from Crown Heights, Brooklyn to India in 2003 to lead the Nariman House, home to the Chabad Lubavitch community in Mumbai and to Jewish visitors from around the world. They and Rabbi Teitelbaum were deeply committed to providing the local Jewish community and Jewish tourists with a place to gather and learn and to provide them with spiritual guidance. Today, as every day, we stand in solidarity with those who preach democracy and peace."
- Michael Bloomberg
, Mayor of New York said, “Today we learned we have lost two New Yorkers: Rabbi Gavriel Noach Holtzberg and his wife, Rivka. This is a tragic loss for the Lubavitch community, and for our entire City. ...That their son survived is a miracle, and our entire City is grateful for his nanny's heroic act. During a time of terrible sadness, her courage re-affirms our faith in the capacity of good to triumph over evil. ...Our hearts go out to the Lubavitch community, and to the many New Yorkers of all different religions and ethnicities who have been affected by the attacks. We will continue to pray for all of them, for all the people of Mumbai, for an immediate end to the violence, and for the release of all hostages.”
Chabad house
A Chabad house is a centre for disseminating Orthodox Judaism by the Chabad movement. Chabad Houses are run by the local Shaliach , who was sent to that place by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who founded all Chabad Houses...
( ), is a five-story landmark in the Colaba
Colaba
Colaba is a part of the city of Mumbai, India, and also a Lok Sabha constituency. During Portuguese rule in the 16th century, the island was known as Candil...
area in southern Mumbai, India. The building was home to a Chabad house
Chabad house
A Chabad house is a centre for disseminating Orthodox Judaism by the Chabad movement. Chabad Houses are run by the local Shaliach , who was sent to that place by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who founded all Chabad Houses...
, a Jewish outreach
Orthodox Judaism outreach
Orthodox Jewish outreach commonly referred to as Kiruv or Keruv , is the collective work or movement of Orthodox Judaism that reaches out to non-Orthodox Jews to believe in God, engage in Torah study, and practice the Mitzvot in the hope that they will live according to Orthodox Jewish law...
center run by Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg
Gavriel Holtzberg
Gavriel Noach Holtzberg was an Orthodox rabbi and the Chabad emissary to Mumbai, India, where he and his wife Rivka ran the Mumbai Chabad House. He was also a religious leader and community builder for the local Jewish Indian community, and led the Friday-night Shabbat services at the Knesset...
, and they have owned the Building since around 2006. The center had an educational center, a synagogue, offered drug prevention services, and a hostel. The building was attacked and six of its occupants, including Rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
Gavriel Noach Holtzberg
Gavriel Holtzberg
Gavriel Noach Holtzberg was an Orthodox rabbi and the Chabad emissary to Mumbai, India, where he and his wife Rivka ran the Mumbai Chabad House. He was also a religious leader and community builder for the local Jewish Indian community, and led the Friday-night Shabbat services at the Knesset...
and his wife, Rivka, who was five months pregnant, were killed during the November 2008 Mumbai attacks
2008 Mumbai attacks
The 2008 Mumbai attacks were more than 10 coordinated shooting and bombing attacks across Mumbai, India's largest city, by Islamist attackers who came from Pakistan...
by Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
i Islamic terrorists. Their two-year-old son Moshe survived the attack after being rescued by his Indian nanny, Sandra Samuel
Sandra Samuel
Sandra Samuel is an Indian nanny who saved the life of two-year-old Moshe Holtzberg during the November 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks. The government of Israel is considering granting Samuel the title Righteous among the Nations....
.
Chabad House
The Chabad HouseChabad house
A Chabad house is a centre for disseminating Orthodox Judaism by the Chabad movement. Chabad Houses are run by the local Shaliach , who was sent to that place by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who founded all Chabad Houses...
, located at 5 Hormusji Street, Colaba
Colaba
Colaba is a part of the city of Mumbai, India, and also a Lok Sabha constituency. During Portuguese rule in the 16th century, the island was known as Candil...
, is one of eight synagogues in Mumbai and has been described as the epicentre of the Jewish community in the city.
This Chabad House
Chabad house
A Chabad house is a centre for disseminating Orthodox Judaism by the Chabad movement. Chabad Houses are run by the local Shaliach , who was sent to that place by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who founded all Chabad Houses...
is one of 4,000 such houses in 73 countries, typically run by husband-and-wife couples. In 2003, this Chabad House, the first in Mumbai, was opened by Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg, newly married, and until the November 2008 Mumbai attacks was run by them. It catered to Israelis who are on their way to "party hotspots" such as Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
and Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
, in addition to the city's local Jewish community and traveling Jewish businessmen. The Holtzbergs also ran a synagogue and taught Torah classes, in addition to the rabbi conducting weddings for local Jewish couples. It is the Chabad headquarters for Mumbai. The place was open to anyone who wanted a place to pray, eat kosher
Kashrut
Kashrut is the set of Jewish dietary laws. Food in accord with halakha is termed kosher in English, from the Ashkenazi pronunciation of the Hebrew term kashér , meaning "fit" Kashrut (also kashruth or kashrus) is the set of Jewish dietary laws. Food in accord with halakha (Jewish law) is termed...
food or celebrate Jewish holidays. In a film in 2006, Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg said that anyone who visited the center was welcome. It was not unusual for the Rabbi and his wife to have 30 people for dinner. Gavriel (born 1979, raised in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
) and Rivka (born 1980 in Afula
Afula
Afula is a city in the North District of Israel, often known as the "Capital of the Valley", referring to the Jezreel Valley. The city had a population of 40,500 at the end of 2009.-History:...
, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
) Holtzberg came to Mumbai in 2003 after completing a mission in Thailand.
Three flights a week bring hundreds of Israeli travelers from Israel to Mumbai and in an interview Holtzberg said he understood the nature of their needs. The young rabbi, who was born in Israel but grew up in Brooklyn, said that they "need relief" from the army
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
, from work, from real life. He said, "they come here to do everything the army didn't allow them to do. Their shoes had to be polished and tied—here they wear sandals. They had to cut their hair—here they grow their hair long."
In addition, "Jews from all nationalities stopped there—primarily Israelis, but also those from Singapore and other places. It was almost like a second home to them," said Elijah Jacob, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee
American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee
The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee is a worldwide Jewish relief organization headquartered in New York. It was established in 1914 and is active in more than 70 countries....
's country manager for India. "Our country director used to say it was like a second home to him because of all of the Jews there on Shabbat."
Gavriel also helped with some of the local synagogues. He helped them gather donations, do fund-raising for the synagogue T'feret Israel, in central Mumbai in Jacobs Circle, and helped build a mikvah
Mikvah
Mikveh is a bath used for the purpose of ritual immersion in Judaism...
there. Also, he was officially a shochet
Shechita
Shechita is the ritual slaughter of mammals and birds according to Jewish dietary laws...
, making chickens available to the local Jewish community, making challah for the community, and the couple was "available for the community," there to answer Halakhic
Halakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
principles of the local community.
Chabad officials said they were certain the Mumbai house would reopen, and within hours of news of the Holtzbergs' deaths, young Chabad couples from around the world offered to move to Mumbai to continue their work.
Services
These are the services this Chabad House offered.
|
Mezuzah A mezuzah is usually a metal or wooden rectangular object that is fastened to a doorpost of a Jewish house. Inside it is a piece of parchment inscribed with specified Hebrew verses from the Torah... and Tefillin Tefillin Tefillin also called phylacteries are a set of small black leather boxes containing scrolls of parchment inscribed with verses from the Torah, which are worn by observant Jews during weekday morning prayers. Although "tefillin" is technically the plural form , it is loosely used as a singular as... checking |
|---|
Attack
The Chabad house was seized and attacked during the November 2008 Mumbai attacks
2008 Mumbai attacks
The 2008 Mumbai attacks were more than 10 coordinated shooting and bombing attacks across Mumbai, India's largest city, by Islamist attackers who came from Pakistan...
. At around 2145 hours (9:45 pm) local time on Wednesday, November 26, four terrorists took advantage of the fact that local security forces were operating in several locations throughout the city. Newscasters were calling it the "final assault", and the building is near the Leopold Cafe
Leopold Cafe
The Leopold Cafe is a large and popular restaurant and bar on Colaba Causeway, in the Fort area of Mumbai, India, located across from the Colaba Police station.It was one of the first sites attacked during the November 2008 Mumbai attacks...
, another building attacked during the strike. However according to a new report Nariman House was actually the main target on November 26 and the rest of the targets were only to amplify the effect.
Initially it was reported that six Israeli Jews were being held hostage. Later Chabad spokesman in Israel Moni Ender said that there were at least eight Israelis inside the house, including Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife Rivka Holtzberg. The rabbi's two-year-old son Moshe was rescued by his nanny, Sandra Samuel
Sandra Samuel
Sandra Samuel is an Indian nanny who saved the life of two-year-old Moshe Holtzberg during the November 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks. The government of Israel is considering granting Samuel the title Righteous among the Nations....
, 44, who had worked for the centre for the previous five years.
The terrorists "would be told by their handlers in Pakistan that the lives of Jews were worth 50 times those of non-Jews." They were tortured very badly.
It was reported that gunmen fired indiscriminately towards the crowd. Late on Thursday evening, State officials in India told the Associated Press that eight hostages had been released from the Chabad House. Later Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said that the eight people seen near Chabad House were not Jewish hostages but local Indians from a home in the same compound. Early Friday morning a large blast was heard at the centre as fighting continued, even though other sources were reporting that the building was under the control of the Indian security forces.
During the siege US Chabad official Rabbi Levi Shemtov talked with one of the terrorists on Holtzberg's cell phone. The FBI and other negotiation experts helped guide him through the process, which included around five phone calls. Having to find an Urdu speaker to speak with him, they were unable to directly speak to any of the hostages, but Shemtov did say he heard the voice of one woman screaming in English, "please help immediately."
Shortly before dawn on Friday, Indian security forces began an attack on the Chabad House that lasted until after sundown. The operation began when 22 NSG
NSG
NSG may stand for:*National Security Guards *National Street Gazetteer *Nippon Sheet Glass*NOD SCID gamma immunodeficient mouse strain*Nordic Polish Support Group*Nordic Sound Group*North Sea Gas*North Sydney Girls High School...
Commandoes rappelled out from an Indian Air Force MI-17
MI-17
MI-17 can refer to:* Mil Mi-17, Soviet helicopter*M-17...
chopper on the roof of the building. NSG Commandoes were in position in the adjacent buildings to provide cover fire to the assault team if needed. Commandoes entered the building from the top and two loud blasts were heard followed by heavy gunfire. The whole operation was watched live on TV as news footage showed troops abseiling
Abseiling
Abseiling , rappelling in American English, is the controlled descent down a rock face using a rope; climbers use this technique when a cliff or slope is too steep and/or dangerous to descend without protection.- Slang terms :...
from a helicopter into the building, and soldiers on the ground closing in. Initially it was reported that five hostages were killed at the Chabad House, then six on Friday, eight by Saturday morning and the final number of six on Sunday, when two missing Israelis made contact with the Israeli Foreign Ministry. When the raid ended at sundown everyone inside the building was dead, including the rabbi and his wife. An Indian commando Havaldar Gajendra Singh Bisht was killed during the operation. According to ZAKA members, at least one hostage (Rabbi Holtzberg) might have been killed in the crossfire on Friday when the commandos moved in; this was rejected by government authorities as stories and irresponsible comments. Some of the victims had been bound. Some of the others were killed by the terrorists on Wednesday, and the remainder on Thursday. The rabbi's wife and Orpaz had been killed many hours before Nariman House was retaken. It is also believed that the Rabbi and his pregnant wife were sexually assaulted and their genitals were mutilated before they were killed.
A handout provided by Indian police identified the two terrorists killed at Nariman House as a certain "Nasir" alias Abu Umar, and "Babar Imaran".
Victims
List of people murdered| Name | Age | Nationality |
|---|---|---|
| Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg Gavriel Holtzberg Gavriel Noach Holtzberg was an Orthodox rabbi and the Chabad emissary to Mumbai, India, where he and his wife Rivka ran the Mumbai Chabad House. He was also a religious leader and community builder for the local Jewish Indian community, and led the Friday-night Shabbat services at the Knesset... |
29 |  United States BrooklynBrooklyn Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated... , United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... (and dual  Israel Israeli citizenship) |
| Rebbetzin Rivka Holtzberg | 28 | Israel Afula Afula Afula is a city in the North District of Israel, often known as the "Capital of the Valley", referring to the Jezreel Valley. The city had a population of 40,500 at the end of 2009.-History:... , Israel Israel The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea... |
| Bentzion Kruman | 26 | Israel Bat Yam, Israel Israel The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea... (and dual United States US citizenship) |
| Rabbi Leibish Teitelbaum | 37 | United States Brooklyn Brooklyn Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated... , United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
| Yoheved Orpaz | 62 | Israel Givatayim, Israel Israel The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea... |
| Norma Shvarzblat Rabinovich | 50 |  Mexico |
Reactions
- Chabad-LubavitchChabadChabad or Chabad-Lubavitch is a major branch of Hasidic Judaism.Chabad may also refer to:*Chabad-Strashelye, a defunct branch of the Chabad school of Hasidic Judaism*Chabad-Kapust or Kapust, a defunct branch of the Chabad school of Hasidic Judaism...
- Merkos L'Inyonei ChinuchMerkos L'Inyonei ChinuchMerkos L'Inyonei Chinuch is the central educational arm of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement. Founded by the sixth Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok Schneersohn, in 1943, the organization was initially directed by his son-in-law, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who would later become the seventh Rebbe...
, the educational arm of Chabad-Lubavitch released a statement stating, "Gabi and Rivky Holtzberg made the ultimate sacrifice. As emissaries to Mumbai, Gabi and Rivky gave up the comforts of the West in order to spread Jewish pride in a corner of the world that was a frequent stop for throngs of Israeli tourists. Their Chabad House was popular among the local community, as well as with visiting business people. For five years, they ran a synagogue and Torah classes, and helped people dealing with drug addiction and poverty. Their selfless love will live on with all the people they touched. We will continue the work they started."
- Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd
Kevin RuddKevin Michael Rudd is an Australian politician who was the 26th Prime Minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010. He has been Minister for Foreign Affairs since 2010...
told more than 1,000 people at a memorial service at the Yeshiva Centre in New South WalesNew South WalesNew South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
that Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife, Rivkah, had “devoted their lives to acts of goodness and kindness and compassion for others ... but they lost their lives in a senseless act of hatred. In the face of this terror we must not bow to fear. We must respond by spreading our own message of tolerance and respect for people of other backgrounds and other beliefs.” Federal Opposition leader Malcolm TurnbullMalcolm TurnbullMalcolm Bligh Turnbull is an Australian politician. He has been a member of the Australian House of Representatives since 2004, and was Leader of the Opposition and parliamentary leader of the Liberal Party from 16 September 2008 to 1 December 2009.Turnbull has represented the Division...
and U.S. Consul-General Judith Fergin also spoke at the memorial service. A representative from the Indian Consulate was also present. In a speech to Federal Parliament, Michael DanbyMichael DanbyMichael David Danby is an Australian politician and has been an Australian Labor Party member of the Australian House of Representatives since October 1998, representing the Division of Melbourne Ports, Victoria...
, a Jewish member of the ruling Labor PartyAustralian Labor PartyThe Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
, said it was important to remember the names of the innocent victims of Mumbai attacks, stating that “I raise my voice in this national parliament and praise the memory of those innocent kedoshim who were killed in the Chabad House in Mumbai only because they were Jews.”
- Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Israel
The Prime Minister of Israel is the head of the Israeli government and the most powerful political figure in Israel . The prime minister is the country's chief executive. The official residence of the prime minister, Beit Rosh Hamemshala is in Jerusalem...
Ehud Olmert
Ehud Olmert
Ehud Olmert is an Israeli politician and lawyer. He served as Prime Minister of Israel from 2006 to 2009, as a Cabinet Minister from 1988 to 1992 and from 2003 to 2006, and as Mayor of Jerusalem from 1993 to 2003....
said, "this terrible sight of Chabad House leaders wrapped in prayer shawls
Tallit
A tallit pl. tallitot is a Jewish prayer shawl. The tallit is worn over the outer clothes during the morning prayers on weekdays, Shabbat and holidays...
is shocking. These are pictures that bring us back to the moments in history which we had hoped would never return. It seems that hatred of Jews and Israelis provides motivation for such murderous acts....Last week was marked by among the most serious terrorist attacks India has ever known in Mumbai and which were the product of extremist Islam—brutal and unrestrained, which tries to sow death and destruction wherever it can. There is no doubt that these attacks were designed, inter alia
Inter Alia
-Track listing:# Inter Alia# Outfox'd # Righteous Badass # The Altogether feat. Bix, Apt, UNIVERSE ARM and Cal# The Day-to-Daily# Trouble Brewing # The Prestidigitator# The Force...
, to intentionally harm Jewish institutions. The hatred of Jews, the state of Israel, and Jewish symbols is still a factor that spurs and encourages such murderous acts." Foreign Minister
Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel
The Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel is the political head of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The position is one of the most important in the Israeli cabinet after Prime Minister and Defense Minister...
and Acting Prime Minister Tzipi Livni
Tzipi Livni
Tzipporah Malkah "Tzipi" Livni is an Israeli lawyer and politician. She is the current Israeli Opposition Leader and leader of Kadima, the largest party in the Knesset. Raised an ardent nationalist, Livni has become one of her nation's leading voices for the two-state solution. In Israel she has...
said: "The fact that the assault happened at a Chabad House symbolizes more than anything the fact that this assault targeted Jews, Israelis. Israel, India and the rest of the free world are positioned in the forefront of the battle against terrorism and extremists."
- Canadian Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
Stephen Harper
Stephen Harper
Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...
spoke at a Parliament Hill
Parliament Hill
Parliament Hill , colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern banks of the Ottawa River in downtown Ottawa, Ontario. Its Gothic revival suite of buildingsthe parliament buildings serves as the home of the Parliament of Canada and contains a number of architectural...
ceremony organized by Chabad-Lubavitch
Chabad-Lubavitch
Chabad-Lubavitch is a Chasidic movement in Orthodox Judaism. One of the world's larger and best-known Chasidic movements, its official headquarters is in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn, New York...
to honor the Jewish victims of the terrorist attacks in Mumbai. He expressed condolences over the murder at Chabad's Mumbai center of Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife Rivka. Harper described the killings as "affronts to the values that unite all civilized people" and that anti-Semitism "is a pernicious evil that must be exposed, that must be confronted, that must be repudiated, whenever and wherever it appears. Harper also stated that the quick installment of a new rabbi at the Chabad center in Mumbai as a signal that the Jewish people will "never bow to violence and hatred."
- President-elect
President-elect
An -elect is a political candidate who has been elected to an office but who has not yet been sworn in or officially taken office. These may include an incoming president, senator, representative, governor and mayor.Analogously, the term "designate" An -elect is a political candidate who has been...
Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
said, "Michelle
Michelle Obama
Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama is the wife of the 44th and incumbent President of the United States, Barack Obama, and is the first African-American First Lady of the United States...
and I want to express our profound sorrow and heartfelt condolences over the terrible tragedy that befell the Chabad Lubavitch community, and indeed the entire Jewish community, last week in Mumbai. We mourn the loss of Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg, and all their Chabad House guests, in these attacks. They were taken from us by terrorists with no regard for human life, and we must remain steadfast in support of efforts to bring the perpetrators of these attacks to justice you mourn and remember those we lost, you should know that so many Americans share your grief and pain. May their memories be a blessing." On December 8, 2008, Admiral Mike Mullen, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, stated in speech to the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs
Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs
The Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs is a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit think-tank focusing on issues of United States and Israel in national security. JINSA's stated aim is threefold: to ensure a strong and effective U.S...
"The images of two-year-old Moshe Holtzberg soon after his parents were mercilessly struck down in Chabad house should not ever leave us."
- Hillary Rodham Clinton
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton is the 67th United States Secretary of State, serving in the administration of President Barack Obama. She was a United States Senator for New York from 2001 to 2009. As the wife of the 42nd President of the United States, Bill Clinton, she was the First Lady of the...
, Junior Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and announced Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
said, "My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and families touched by these acts of terror in Mumbai. We still do not know the full measure of this tragedy, which has taken the lives of Indian citizens, Americans, and others who had traveled to Mumbai from around the world. Two New Yorkers, Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and Rivka Holtzberg of Brooklyn are among those who have died, leaving behind their young son. The young couple had traveled from Brooklyn to manage a small Chabad house, welcoming Jews from India and elsewhere to learn, pray, and serve the community. There could be no sharper a reminder, nor a more poignant call to action, than the brutal and heinous violence visited upon the Nariman House and the Holtzberg family, living and working in Mumbai on a mission of peace, scholarship, and spiritual guidance. As those responsible are brought to justice, as we aid and support the victims and their families, as we work to defeat radical extremism and the terror it spawns, let us find strength in knowing that in the face of those who seek to take lives, there are those who seek to give hope and comfort. In the face of those who wish only to destroy, there are individuals like Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and Rivka Holtzberg who travel great distances far from their homes to build a better world."
- David A. Paterson, Governor of New York
Governor of New York
The Governor of the State of New York is the chief executive of the State of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military and naval forces. The officeholder is afforded the courtesy title of His/Her...
said, "Michelle
Michelle Paige Paterson
Michelle R. Paige Paterson was the First Lady of New York state. The wife of New York Governor David Paterson, she became the First Lady on March 17, 2008, when her husband was sworn in as Governor, following the resignation of Eliot Spitzer...
and I are deeply saddened to learn of the tragic deaths of those whose lives were lost in Mumbai, India due to senseless acts of terror. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all of the victims' families including those of Alan and Naomi Scherr from Virginia and native New Yorker Rabbi Leibish Teitelbaum, as well as the family of Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife, Rivka Holtzberg from Brooklyn, New York. The Holtzbergs moved from Crown Heights, Brooklyn to India in 2003 to lead the Nariman House, home to the Chabad Lubavitch community in Mumbai and to Jewish visitors from around the world. They and Rabbi Teitelbaum were deeply committed to providing the local Jewish community and Jewish tourists with a place to gather and learn and to provide them with spiritual guidance. Today, as every day, we stand in solidarity with those who preach democracy and peace."
- Michael Bloomberg
Michael Bloomberg
Michael Rubens Bloomberg is the current Mayor of New York City. With a net worth of $19.5 billion in 2011, he is also the 12th-richest person in the United States...
, Mayor of New York said, “Today we learned we have lost two New Yorkers: Rabbi Gavriel Noach Holtzberg and his wife, Rivka. This is a tragic loss for the Lubavitch community, and for our entire City. ...That their son survived is a miracle, and our entire City is grateful for his nanny's heroic act. During a time of terrible sadness, her courage re-affirms our faith in the capacity of good to triumph over evil. ...Our hearts go out to the Lubavitch community, and to the many New Yorkers of all different religions and ethnicities who have been affected by the attacks. We will continue to pray for all of them, for all the people of Mumbai, for an immediate end to the violence, and for the release of all hostages.”
- BrooklynBrooklynBrooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
- Marty MarkowitzMarty MarkowitzMarty Markowitz is the Borough President of Brooklyn, New York City, the most populous borough in New York City with nearly 2.6 million residents. Markowitz was first elected borough president in 2001 after serving 23 years as a New York State Senator...
, Brooklyn borough presidentBorough presidentBorough President is an elective office in each of the five boroughs of New York City.-Reasons for establishment:...
, said, "We join the Brooklyn Lubavitch, Volove, and SatmarSatmar (Hasidic dynasty)Satmar is a Hasidic movement comprising mostly Hungarian and Romanian Hasidic Jewish Holocaust survivors and their descendants. It was founded and led by the late Hungarian-born Grand Rebbe Yoel Teitelbaum , who was the rabbi of Szatmárnémeti, Hungary...
communities and all Brooklynites in expressing our outrage over the senseless and cruel murders of Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg, his wife Rivka, Rabbi Leibish Teitelbaum, Alan Scherr and his 13-year-old daughter Naomi of Virginia, and all of the innocents murdered and wounded in Mumbai. The monsters responsible for these attacks are attempting to undermine democracy in peace-loving nations everywhere, but this savagery only strengthens our resolve to eradicate terrorism and such atrocities against innocents of all faiths, wherever they exist. The Holtzbergs could have lived a simple and quiet life in Crown Heights, where Rabbi Holtzberg grew up, but their sense of religious duty took them to India to run Mumbai's Chabad House, which, under their stewardship, became a comforting home away from home for thousands of Jews. HaMakom y'nachem eschem b'soch sh'ar aveilei Tzion v'Yerushalayim—May G-d comfort you among the rest of the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem."
- Neturei KartaNeturei KartaNeturei Karta is a Haredi Jewish group formally created in Jerusalem, British Mandate of Palestine, in 1938, splitting off from Agudas Yisroel...
- A leaflet published by the anti-Zionist group Neturei Karta expressed support the attack on, and the murder of those inside of, the Nariman house. The leaflet stated that ChabadChabadChabad or Chabad-Lubavitch is a major branch of Hasidic Judaism.Chabad may also refer to:*Chabad-Strashelye, a defunct branch of the Chabad school of Hasidic Judaism*Chabad-Kapust or Kapust, a defunct branch of the Chabad school of Hasidic Judaism...
was rightfully punished for its relations with "the filthy, deplorable traitors–the cursed Zionists that are your friends." The leaflet went on to slam the invitation of Israeli state officials to the funerals of the victims, claiming that they "uttered words of heresy and blasphemy." The leaflet went on to attack the Chabad movement itself, claiming that it has been imbued with "false national sentiment" and criticizing the organization for allowing all JewsJewsThe Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
to stay in its centres, without differentiating "between good and evil, right and wrong, pure and impure, a Jew and a convert, a believer and a heretic." The leaflet concludes that "the road you (Chabad) have taken is the road of death and it leads to doom, assimilation and the uprooting of the Torah."