Special Report
MASSACRE IN MUMBAI
Line Of Fire
Terrorists targeted
Jews, Israelis.
Ron Kampeas
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Washington
T
he only Mumbai terrorist caught
alive told an Indian newspaper
that he and his colleagues were
sent to target Israelis.
Azam Amir Kasab, a Pakistani, told
Indian police that the terrorists targeted
the Chabad outreach center, known as the
Nariman House, because it was frequented
by Israelis, the Times of India reported
Sunday.
Israelis were targeted to "avenge atroci-
ties on Palestinians:' the paper reported
Kasab as saying.
The Times also quoted a source as say-
ing that some of the terrorists killed in the
operation had earlier rented rooms at the
Nariman House, identifying themselves as
Malaysian students, in order to study the
building.
"There is no doubt that these attacks
What You Can Do
To make a donation to a fund estab-
lished to help the young children of
the Holtzbergs and to rebuild the
Chabad House in Mumbai, send a
check to Chabad of Mumbai Relief
Fund, 770 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn,
NY 11213, call (718) 774-4000 or
donate online at chabadindia.org .
Personal stories about the
Holtzbergs or Chabad of Mumbai
may be read or added to the Web site
memorial®lubavitchmi.org .
Per Rivka Holtzberg's father's
request, names of those lighting
Shabbat candles will be shared with
the family by e-mailing estie®jew-
ishcommerce.org . To view a video
of the Holtzbergs that encourages
Shabbat candle lighting, go to you-
In Their Memory from page A14
Rabbi Schneor Greenberg of the Chabad
Jewish Center of Commerce, is the brother
of Rivka Holtzberg's uncle.
"But as Jews, and even more so as fellow
Chabad shluchim, they were sisters and
brothers to us all," Estie Greenberg said.
"May only good and light come from this:'
The Greenbergs joined others at Chabad
A16
December 4 • 2008
J.
were designed, inter alia, to intentionally
harm such Jewish institutions:' Israeli
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told his
Cabinet Sunday.
"The government of Israel is doing,
and will continue to do, everywhere, what
needs to be done to protect Jewish institu-
tions insofar as the matter depends on us
and is possible, in the very special circum-
stances related to events of this kind."
Olmert praised the Indian govern-
ment and military for their response to
the attacks on 10 sites in Mumbai, which
killed more than 170 people and left hun-
dreds injured. Six Israelis were confirmed
killed in the Chabad center.
Olmert said Sunday that he was briefed
frequently by security and intelligence
officials who were "in close touch with the
Indian government:'
"At no stage were the issues of whether
or not Israel should join the operation,
or do things that were within the power
of the Indian government and its strong
and trained military to do alone, on the
agenda; Olmert told the Cabinet at its
weekly meeting. "I am very pleased at the
cooperation and would like to take this
opportunity to thank the Indian govern-
tube.com . Type in: "Answer to Terror
at Chabad Mumbai, India."
Funds have been established for
Rabbi Leibish Teitelbaum and Rabbi
Bentzion Chroman, who were assist-
ing him with kashrut inspections,
when the two stopped for Minchah
services on their way out of India
before going back home to Israel.
Rabbi Teitelbaum left a wife and
eight children in Mea Shearim; Rabbi
Chroman left a wife and three chil-
dren, the youngest of whom is 2
months old, in Bat Yam.
To make a donation to the family of
Rabbi Leibish Teitelbaum, access the
Web site at teitelbaumorphanfund.org ,
call (917) 807-3234 or send a check
payable to Congregation Chasdei
Yakov, to Teitelbaum Orphan Fund, ao
Centers worldwide who asked their com-
munities to "honor the request of Rivka
Holtzberg's father, who asked women and
girls to light Shabbat candles and include a
prayer for all those suffering in Mumbai:'
They also collected names of those
lighting Shabbat candles to forward to
Holtzberg's family, saying they hope "it is a
source of comfort to them:' El
Moshe Holtzberg, who turned 2 on Nov. 29, cries out during memorial services
Monday at a synagogue in Mumbai.
ment for seeing fit to update us through-
out the events."
Among those killed in the Chabad
house were its director, Rabbi Gavriel
Holtzberg, and his wife, Rivka. Rabbi
Holtzberg was a dual U.S.-Israeli citi-
zen; Rivka was Israeli. A cook from the
Nariman House had fled to safety ear-
lier with the Holtzbergs' 2-year-old son,
Moshe; she also was his nanny. The
Holtzbergs were buried Monday in Kfar
Chabad, Israel.
Also slain was Norma Shvarzblat
Rabinovich, 50, who was scheduled to
make aliyah. Rabinovich, a Mexican
citizen, had plans to leave for Israel on
Monday to join two of her three chil-
dren already living there. Also killed
were Rabbis Leibish Teitelbaum, 38, and
Bentzion Chroman, 28, of Israel. Yocheved
Orpaz, 60, a mother of four from near
Tel Aviv, had gone to India to meeet her
daughter and two grandchildren who were
traveling there.
The two American Jewish victims of the
Mumbai attack were a father and daugh-
ter from Baltimore. Alan Scherr, 58, and
Naomi Scherr, 13, were killed at the Oberoi
Hotel.
Israel has sent a forensics team, includ-
ing experts on the identification of human
remains, to Mumbai, Israeli media report-
ed. In addition, Israel has sent a group of
anti-terrorism experts to Mumbai to study
how the large-scale attack was carried out
and who was behind it.
Rabbi Moshe Wolfson, 1574-43 Street,
Brooklyn, NY 11219. For information,
send an e-mail to teitelbaumorphan-
fund@gmail.com .
To make a donation to the family of
Rabbi Bentzion Chroman, access the
Web site at krumanfoundation.com, or
send a check payable to Congregation
Chasdei Shlome, to Rabbi Aaron
Twerski, 1444 38th St. Brooklyn, NY,
11218. For information, e-mail to kru-
manfoundation®hotmail.com .
To join the global Mitzvah Campaign
to pledge to do a mitzvah in memory
of those killed in the attacks, go
to chabad.org ; click on "Add Your
Mitzvah." Mitzvot, including "say a
prayer," "charity and acts of kind-
ness," "Torah study" and "other" are
listed under "Select a Mitzvah."
"Light Shabbat candles; give extra
tzedakah; put on tefillin," wrote Rabbi
Alter and Chanchi Goldstein of the
Chabad House at the University of
Michigan in a letter to students and
community members. "Do it for the
Holtzbergs. Do it for their orphaned
2-year-old son. Do it to bring some
much-needed light into this darkened
world. And it was on the frontlines
that the Holtzbergs gave up the com-
forts of Israel and America and made
the ultimate sacrifice. We all have
a responsibility to ensure that the
Holtzbergs' legacy will live on."
A forum to share thoughts and feel-
ings about recent events in India may
be accessed at chabad.org .
Community Expresses Grief
geting innocent civilians join a long list
of Al Qaeda and other self-declared
Muslim extremist attacks against Jews,
Americans and other Westerners.
Especially heinous was the cold-blood-
ed murder of children. We pray that
God will grant strength and comfort
to the families and friends of Rabbi
Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg and of the
hundreds of other victims."
Jewish Community Relations Council
of Metropolitan Detroit President Todd
Mendel and Executive Director Robert
Cohen, issued this statement Friday:
"The horrifying terrorist attacks
in Mumbai are a tragedy for the vic-
tims and their families, for India, and
for peace-loving people everywhere.
These cowardly acts deliberately tar-