UAE mourns killing of Rabbi Zvi Kogan, pledges commitment to peace

By Alperen Aktas

ISTANBUL (AA) - The UAE mourned the killing of missing rabbi, Zvi Kogan, expressing deep sorrow over the "senseless death."

UAE Ambassador to US Yousef Al Otaiba said in a statement that the murder was not just a crime against Kogan, but against the UAE itself. "It was an attack on our homeland, our values, and our vision," he said.

The ambassador emphasized that the UAE stands for peaceful coexistence and rejects extremism.

"In the UAE, we welcome everyone. We embrace peaceful coexistence. We reject extremism and fanaticism," he added.

Al Otaiba vowed that the UAE would honor Kogan’s memory by continuing to uphold its values of diversity and peace.

"We are more determined than ever to protect the Emirates as an example of acceptance and peace," he said.

Israeli authorities said Sunday that the body of a missing rabbi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been found.

Rabbi Zvi Kogan, an Israeli-Moldovan dual national, had been missing in the UAE since Thursday but a joint statement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office and the Foreign Ministry confirmed that his body was found.

The statement called his killing “a despicable antisemitic terrorist act,” and vowed to “act by all means” to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Kogan was an envoy of the Orthodox Jewish organization Chabad in the UAE since it normalized its relations with Israel under a US-sponsored agreement in late 2020.