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Chroman and his son

'His prayer book was open'

Brother of Mumbai terror victim Bentzion Chroman says he was murdered after stopping to pray at Chabad House; Friends who found him said his prayer book was still open, says brother. Yocheved Orpaz's sister: She was a good fairy

48 horrific hours: Bloodstained prayer books, upturned tables and chairs, and blown-up walls serve as a silent testament to the horror at the Chabad House in Mumbai – the site of a terror attack that left at least eight Jews dead.

 

The Foreign Ministry told Ynet Saturday evening that up to nine bodies were found at the site, including six that were already identified. An Israeli forensic team may head to India in order to assist teams at the scene in identifying more victims.


Murder scene at Jewish center (Photo: Ilan Gur Ari, Yedioth Ahronoth)

 

Meanwhile, umerous friends and relatives gathered in Bat Yam, south of Tel Aviv, Saturday night at the home of Bentzion Chroman, 28, murdered in the terror attack at Chabad's Mumbai offices. He is survived by his wife and three children, aged five, two, and two months.

 

Chroman was sent to Mumbai to serve as a kashrut observer, and his brother said he stopped at the Chabad House for prayer.

 

"Friends who found him told me his prayer book was still open," Chroman's brother told Ynet. "He was sent to India on a one-time trip. He was supposed to fly two weeks before that but the trip was delayed because of visa requirements."

 

'He was a good man'  

Meanwhile, friends and relatives are mourning the death of Yocheved Orpaz, also killed at the Chabad House. Her sister, Orly, told Ynet that Yocheved traveled to India to visit her daughter and two grandchildren who were traveling there.

 

"She was an amazing and noble woman, a good fairy and a mother of four," Orly said. "She loved to travel. We were waiting for a miracle. We spent Shabbat together, until the bad news arrived."

 

Leibish Teitlebaum, another terror victim at the Chabad House, resided in Jerusalem's Mea Shearim neighborhood, and traveled to India as a kashrut supervisor. His close friend, Yoel Steinmetz, told Ynet: "He was always upbeat, even when bad things would happen…he would welcome everyone happily, host guys that arrived from abroad for Shabbat, feed them, and bring everyone closer. He was a good man."

 

"We would regularly see him talking to poor people and encouraging them," Steinmetz said. "I loved him very much…last night already I had a bad feeling that there was no chance he was alive."

 


פרסום ראשון: 11.29.08, 21:18
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