Three arrested over death in UAE of rabbi Israel says was murdered in ‘antisemitic act of terror’

By Tamar Michaelis, Mohammed Tawfeeq, Sophie Tanno and Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN

(CNN) — Three people have been arrested in connection with the death in the UAE of an Israeli rabbi who, according to Israel, was killed in an “antisemitic act of terror.”

Zvi Kogan, who also holds Moldovan citizenship and is a representative of Chabad, a religious movement of Hasidic Jews with communities, synagogues and other institutions in many countries, was found dead on Sunday, according to the local authorities. The 28-year-old had been missing since Thursday afternoon. Chabad’s website says he was abducted from Dubai – one of the seven emirates that make up the UAE.

Kogan’s body arrived in Israel on Monday, and his funeral took place that night in the village of Kfar Chabad, southeast of Tel Aviv.

“Dear Zvi, our dear son, we miss you, we miss you a lot,” his father, Alexander Hacohen Kogan, said at the funeral, crying.

“He loved everyone. We were blessed with many kids. He is one of the youngest. He loved his father, his mother, his brothers and sisters,” he continued.

“His happiness in life was giving to others,” he said, “he loved everyone and everybody loved him.”

Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel Kalman Bar also spoke at Kogan’s funeral, calling him the “ultimate sacrifice for the entire Jewish world.”

“There are no words that can describe the pain we all feel. There are no words through which we can mourn and comfort the family,” Bar said.

The UAE’s Ministry of Interior said on Monday it had started legal proceedings against three Uzbek nationals who were arrested in connection with Kogan’s murder. It said the authorities were committed to “swiftly take the necessary measures to uncover the details, circumstances, and motives of the incident.”

The three suspects were caught while on the run in Turkey, according to a security source. The source said Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT) and police force caught the suspects while they were leaving the airport in Istanbul, after the UAE government asked Turkey for help.

On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Israel would “use all means at its disposal to bring the murderers of Kogan and those who sent them to justice.”

Extending his “heartfelt condolences” to the Kogan family, Netanyahu added that “the murder of an Israeli citizen and Chabad emissary is a heinous, antisemitic act of terror.”

At the same time, an Israeli foreign ministry official told CNN that Israel would not allow Kogan’s murder to sour relations with the Arab nation and that the country would use it as an opportunity to strengthen ties.

“If anything, we will only utilize this event to further and deepen our cooperation with our Emirati colleagues,” the Israeli official said, adding that the murderers were “enemies of those who are striving to have more relations” between Israel and the UAE.

The official refused to divulge details of the investigation into the murder but said Israel is working with UAE authorities to determine whether more people are involved and if “outside influences” had a role.

There has been “very strong cooperation” with UAE authorities, the official said, adding that Kogan’s body was transported to Israel on Monday.

Israeli authorities have reissued travel advice for nationals, recommending against non-essential travel and say visitors should minimize movement and stay in secure places. The official who spoke to CNN stressed this was not a new travel warning, only a reiteration of previously issued guidance.

Kogan worked alongside other Chabad emissaries to establish and expand Judaism in the UAE. He founded the first Jewish education center in the region, as well as helped make kosher food widely available, according to the Chabad movement’s official website.

Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, vowed on Monday to bring the perpetrators to justice, saying “none will escape.”

“Zvi Kogan’s brutal kidnapping and murder in the UAE shocked and saddened the state of Israel. it was a monstrous act of terror that demands swift justice,” Danon said ahead of a UN Security Council meeting.

Kogan’s wife Rivky is a US national, whose uncle Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg was killed in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

The White House said Kogan’s murder was “a horrific crime against all those who stand for peace, tolerance, and coesistence.”

“It was an assault as well on the UAE and its rejection of violent extremism across the board,” White House National Security Council spokesperson Sean Savett said.

“The United States is working in close coordination with Israeli and UAE authorities, and we have offered all appropriate forms of support,” Savett added.

The UAE has a small Jewish community, thought to number thousands. Last year, the Gulf state opened its first-ever purpose built synagogue. Called the “Abrahamic Family House,” the interfaith complex also houses a mosque and a church.

US President-elect Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner posted on X Monday that Kogan was “senselessly murdered to stop the historic bridges he was building between Jews and Muslims in the UAE.”

Kushner – seen by some as pivotal to the incoming US administration’s Middle East efforts – said he and his wife Ivanka Trump would donate $1 million to the Chabad of UAE.

Relations between the UAE and Israel have thawed in recent years. In 2020, the UAE became the most prominent Arab nation in decades to open relations with Israel, under the US-brokered agreement known as the Abraham Accords.

But Reuters says the public presence of Israelis and Jews has receded since the October 7 attacks. Jewish community members told the agency that informal synagogues in Dubai were closed in the wake of the attacks due to security concerns.

This story has been updated with additional developments.

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CNN’s Ivana Kottasova, Lauren Izso and Hira Humayun contributed to this article.