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

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