Young and old: The seven victims of deadly Jerusalem synagogue attack identified
The attack near a synagogue in East Jerusalem on Friday was one of the deadliest in years. The victims include a Ukrainian woman and a 14-year-old boy
The seven people who were killed in a terror attack outside a synagogue in East Jerusalem were identified over the weekend. They include a Ukrainian woman and a teenage boy.
The first victims to be identified were Eli and Natali Mizrahi, a couple who were killed by the 21-year-old Palestinian terrorist as they ran to the crime scene to try and help some of the victims.
Eli, 48, and Natali, 45, had been married for two years and were resident of Jerusalem’s Neve Yaakov neighbourhood where the attack took place.
“We were in the middle of our meal, and there were several shots and my son jumped up. We yelled at him, ‘Don’t go anywhere'” Eli’s father, Shimon, said.
The couple were buried near the city of Beit Shemesh at the the Derech Hachaim cemetery.
Rafael Ben Eliyahu, 56, was the third victim to be identified. Eliyahu, also a resident of the area, is leaving three kids and a wife behind. His son revealed at the funeral that his wife had given birth to a child not long after Eliyahu was killed ion the attack.
“You and mom were supposed to come to the bris, but ultimately you were not able to hold (your grandson). Instead, I’m bringing you to the cemetery. You left a giant hole in our hearts,” Kobi Ben Eliyahu said.
The youngest victim, 14-year-old Asher Natan, was laid to rest on Sunday on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem.
“I always wanted so much for things to be good for you. Now you’re in a good place for eternity. Asher didn’t die, he only parted from his body. His soul is eternal. The unity here is a giant embrace for us,” Asher’s father Aharon said at the funeral, according to Israeli newspaper Yediot Ahronot.
One of the victims of the deadly synagogue attack was Ukrainian woman identified as Irina Korolova, who according to Israeli media was a caretaker.
Ukraine’s President Zelensky wrote a statement on Twitter after the news of her death had broken, saying “We share (Israel’s) pain after the terrorist attacks in Jerusalem. Among the victims is a (Ukrainian) woman.”
68-year-old Shaul Hai was a sexton at a synagogue in the Pisgat Ze’ev neighbourhood, not far from the scene.
Haaretz Daily quoted a friend of Hai saying that his wife died a year and a half ago and that “Despite the tribulations that he underwent in his life, he was always nice to everyone and respected everyone. He was a special person.”
26-year-old Ilya Sosansky was the last victim to be identified. His family told Channel 12 that it was “unimaginable” that he was no longer alive.
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