Wikipedia

Death of Zvi Kogan

On 21 November 2024, Zvi Kogan (Hebrew: צבי קוגן, born 11 August 1996), an Israeli-Moldovan rabbi residing in the United Arab Emirates, was abducted and killed. He was an envoy of the Orthodox Jewish organization Chabad.[2][3] On 24 November 2024, a body was found and confirmed to be that of Kogan.[4]

Rabbi
Zvi Kogan
הרב צבי קוגן הי"ד ‎
Personal
Born(1996-08-11)11 August 1996
Ramat Shlomo, Jerusalem
Diedc. 21 November 2024(2024-11-21) (aged 28)
Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
ReligionJudaism
NationalityIsraeli and Moldovan
SpouseRivky Spielman[1]
Parent(s)Alexander and Etel
Alma materChabad and Litvish Yeshivas
ProfessionRabbi
OccupationAssistant to the Chief Rabbi of the UAE
Jewish leader
ProfessionRabbi
OrganisationChabad
BuriedMount of Olives, Jerusalem
ResidenceAbu Dhabi, UAE

Background

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Kogan was born in 1996 in Ramat Shlomo, Jerusalem, Israel, to Alexander and Etel Kogan.[5] He was raised in his Litvaks-Haredi family with his older brother, Reuven.[5][6][7] As a teenager, Kogan learned at Yeshiva Maoz Chayil in Jerusalem, Yeshivas Rabbeinu Chaim Ozer in Bnei Brak, and finally at the Mir Yeshiva in Jerusalem.[8] Before he moved to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), he served his mandatory service in the Israel Defense Forces' 84th "Givati" Infantry Brigade.[5][9][10]

Kogan and his wife, Rivky (née Spielman), a U.S. citizen, were married in 2022. She then joined him in Abu Dhabi.[11] She is the niece of Gavriel Noach Holtzberg, a Chabad rabbi who was murdered with his wife by an Islamist militant group in India in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.[12]

Work in Abu Dhabi

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Kogan was a representative of the Orthodox Jewish organization Chabad's Abu Dhabi chapter since the UAE normalized diplomatic relations with Israel in the Abraham Accords in 2020. He worked to explain Judaism and disprove myths and stereotypes about the religion.[13] He was an assistant to Chief Rabbi of the UAE, Levi Duchman.[14] He also managed a kosher supermarket, Rimon, on Al Wasl Road in Dubai, where he was a resident.[15][16][17][18][excessive citations] Chabad stated that he "worked to expand Jewish life in the UAE" with Duchman through ways that included ensuring the availability of kosher food and opening the country's first Jewish education center.[12]

In 2021, he led a Yizkor memorial prayer during the UAE's first Holocaust remembrance day memorial.[14]

Abduction and murder

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Before his abduction, Kogan was last seen at the kosher supermarket he managed in Dubai. He then failed to attend scheduled meetings and his wife lost contact with him, leading her to alert a Chabad security chief, who notified local authorities.[7] Kogan had been missing since the afternoon of 21 November 2024. However, Kogan's family said that he stopped contacting them the day prior.[17]

The Israeli Prime Minister's Office announced his disappearance on 23 November 2024 in a statement on behalf of Mossad, and said that Israeli security and intelligence services were investigating the incident.[19][20] It sparked a joint investigation from Israeli intelligence agency Mossad and Emirati authorities.[21] An Israeli delegation arrived in the UAE to aid the investigation.[22] Mossad led the investigation into his disappearance, treating it as a terrorist incident.[23]

Kogan's car and phone were found abandoned in Al Ain, 150 kilometres (93 mi) from Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and on the border of Oman.[24][25] There was blood and signs of violence found in his car.[26] Initial reports said that Kogan was being followed by three Uzbeks while he drove to the city after leaving Rimon, the supermarket that he managed.[22] Investigators later said that the assailants tracked Kogan's movements and then kidnapped him and transported him to Al Ain in his own car, where he was killed.[26] The Uzbeks, thought to have been part of an Iranian cell, are suspected of kidnapping and killing him and then fleeing to Turkey.[22] The involvement of Uzbek militants is a known Iranian tactic.[27]

His body was discovered on 24 November 2024. He was 28.[11]

Aftermath

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that he was "deeply shocked" by the killing and vowed that all means would be used to bring the killers, and "those who dispatched them", to justice.[28] President Isaac Herzog also condemned the killing.[29] The murder occurred as Iran had threatened to retaliate to Israeli airstrikes on its territory on 26 October that took place during a period of heightened tensions between the two countries.[30] Moldovan president Maia Sandu also condemned the attack and expressed mourning for Kogan's death.[31]

The Ministry of Interior of the United Arab Emirates announced the arrest of three people suspected in his killing on 24 November.[32][33][34] The 3 individuals, later identified as Uzbekistan nationals, Olimboy Tohirovich, 28, Makhmudjon Abdurakhim, 28, and Azizbek Kamilovich, 33, were arrested in another country and then extradited to the Emirates.[31]

The United States' Biden Administration condemned the murder, stating that it was "a horrific crime against all those who stand for peace, tolerance, and coexistence" and that "those who carried out this crime, and anyone supporting them, must be held fully accountable."[35]

The Iranian Embassy in the UAE “categorically denied” accusations of Iran's involvement in his murder.[36]

Maia Sandu, the President of Moldova said in a statement on X that "we mourn the tragic loss" of Kogan and "strongly condemn this hateful act".[37]

US Member of Congress Ritchie Torres said "I am shaken by the news of the antisemitic abduction and murder of Rabbi Zvi Kogan, who was kidnapped and killed simply for being Jewish. May his memory be a blessing." Torres also criticized the The New York Times for their report that said that Kogan "disappeared".[38]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "'He Reminded me of Gabi, It's a Difficult Test'". anash.org. 24 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  2. ^ "Reports: Body found amid searches for Chabad rabbi missing in UAE; identification tests underway". The Times of Israel. 24 November 2024. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  3. ^ Gardner, Frank (23 November 2024). "Rabbi who went missing in UAE was murdered, Israel says". BBC News. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  4. ^ Goldenberg, Tia; Gambrell, Jon (24 November 2024). "Israel says rabbi who went missing in the UAE was killed. The government arrests 3". The Washington Post. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  5. ^ a b c New, Moshe (24 November 2024). "Chabad Rabbi Zvi Kogan, 28, Murdered by Terrorists in the UAE". Chabad. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  6. ^ מנחם (23 November 2024). "חשד לחטיפה או רצח: שליח הרבי באבו דאבי הרב צבי קוגן נעלם". חב"ד אינפו (in Hebrew). Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  7. ^ a b "Missing Chabad-Lubavitch emissary may have been followed". Israel National News. 23 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  8. ^ "MORE DETAILS: Missing Chabad-Lubavitch Shliach May Have Been Followed". Matzav. 23 November 2024. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  9. ^ אייכנר, איתמר; ארי, ליאור בן; פריד, שילֹה (23 November 2024). "שירת בגבעתי, שימש כעוזר הרב הראשי בדובאי: זהו שליח חב"ד שגובר החשש שנרצח". Ynet (in Hebrew). Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  10. ^ "Chabad emissary to UAE Zvi Kogan murdered in 'antisemitic terrorist attack'". Chabad.org. 24 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  11. ^ a b "Rabbi Zvi Kogan, 28, Murdered by Terrorists". The Jerusalem Post. 24 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  12. ^ a b "Body of slain Chabad rabbi found in UAE; Israel condemns 'antisemitic act of terror'". The Times of Israel. 24 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  13. ^ "Israel intelligence investigating rabbi's disappearance in United Arab Emirates as 'terrorist incident'". UPI. 23 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  14. ^ a b "Chabad rabbi missing in Abu Dhabi, feared kidnapped or murdered". The Times of Israel. 23 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  15. ^ Maya Oppenheim (24 November 2024). "Dubai rabbi Zvi Kogan killed in ‘heinous terror incident’ says Israel; Netanyahu vows to ‘seek justice’ over death of Zvi Kogan in Dubai," The Independent.
  16. ^ "Missing rabbi killed in the UAE in "heinous antisemitic terror incident," Israel says," CBS News, November 24, 2024.
  17. ^ a b Eichner, Itamar (23 November 2024). "Chabad emissary reported missing in UAE, feared abducted or dead in terror plot". Ynetnews. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  18. ^ Lynch, Niamhie (24 November 2024). "Body of missing rabbi Zvi Kogan found in UAE - as Israeli PM says he was murdered in 'antisemitic terror incident'". Sky News. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  19. ^ "Israeli-Moldovan rabbi living in UAE is missing. Israeli officials fear he may have been kidnapped". AP News. 23 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  20. ^ "Mossad investigating disappearance of rabbi in Abu Dhabi in potential terror incident, Israeli PM's office says". Sky News. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  21. ^ "Rabbi Zvi Kogan was murdered in UAE, Israel says". BBC News. 23 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  22. ^ a b c Eichner, Itamar (23 November 2024). "Missing Chabad emissary's car found abandoned; suspected killed by Iran-linked cell". Ynetnews. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  23. ^ "Mossad investigating missing Chabad emissary in Dubai, may have been under Iranian surveillance". The Jerusalem Post. 23 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  24. ^ Alexander Cornwell and Crispian Balmer (November 24, 2024). "UAE arrests three suspects in killing of Israeli rabbi," Reuters.
  25. ^ "Report: Missing rabbi's car found abandoned near Abu Dhabi". The Times of Israel. 23 November 2024. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
  26. ^ a b Eichner, Itamar (24 November 2024). "UAE says suspects captured in Chabad emissary's killing". Ynetnews. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  27. ^ Weiss, Vered (24 November 2024). "Iran 'categorically denies' involvement in murder of Chabad rabbi in UAE". World Israel News. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  28. ^ "Netanyahu vows: 'None of Rabbi Zvi Kogan's murderers will get away'". Israel National News. 24 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  29. ^ "Israel says rabbi who went missing in the UAE was killed". AP News. 24 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  30. ^ "Israeli rabbi kidnapped in UAE, sparking fears of Iran's involvement". Iran International. 23 November 2024. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
  31. ^ a b "UAE names Uzbek suspects in Israeli rabbi's murder". France 24. 25 November 2024. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  32. ^ "UAE arrests 3 suspects in killing of Chabad rabbi". Reuters via Ynet. 24 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  33. ^ Goldberg, Yitz (24 November 2024). "UAE Interior Ministry: Murderers of Rabbi Zvi Kogan arrested". Israel National News. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  34. ^ Michaelis, Tamar (23 November 2024). "UAE arrests three over death of rabbi Israel says was murdered in 'antisemitic act of terror'". CNN. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  35. ^ "Statement by NSC Spokesperson Sean Savett on the Murder of Rabbi Zvi Kogan in the UAE". The White House. 24 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  36. ^ "Iran denies suggestions of involvement in rabbi's murder in UAE". Al Jazeera. 24 November 2024. The Iranian Embassy in the United Arab Emirates says it "categorically rejects the allegations of Iran's involvement in the murder of this individual".
  37. ^ "Three Uzbeks held in UAE over Israeli rabbi's murder". France 24. 25 November 2024. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  38. ^ "Ritchie Torres calls out NYT for saying murdered Rabbi Zvi Kogan 'disappeared'". Israel National News. 25 November 2024. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
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