Israel says Rabbi Zvi Kogan murdered in ‘anti-Semitic’ attack in UAE, vows to use all means to deal with killers

Condemning the murder of a Rabbi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Israel on Sunday called it an anti-Semitic "terrorist attack" and vowed to use all means to deal with his murderers.

The body of Zvi Kogan, who had gone missing on Thursday, was found by security services in the UAE, Israel prime minister’s office and the foreign ministry said in a joint statement.

The Israeli-Moldovan national was living and working in the UAE as a representative of the Chabad Hasidic movement, an ultra-Orthodox Jewish group known for its outreach efforts worldwide.

"This murder was carried out in the UAE. The murder of an Israeli citizen and a Chabad emissary, is an abhorrent anti-Semitic terrorist attack," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the start of a cabinet meeting.

"The State of Israel will use all means, and will deal with these murderers, and those who dispatched them, to the fullest extent of the law. None of them will get away," he added.

In a post on social media platform X, the Chabad-Lubavitch movement to which Kogan belonged expressed its "great pain" alongside a photo of the Rabbi, adding that he had been "murdered by terrorists after being abducted on Thursday".

"This vile anti-Semitic attack is a reminder of the inhumanity of the enemies of the Jewish people," Israeli President Isaac Herzog said in a statement.

The murder would not "deter us from continuing to grow flourishing communities in the UAE or anywhere", Herzog added.

On Saturday, Netanyahu's office said that Israel was investigating Kogan's disappearance in the UAE and treating it as a "terrorist incident".

In a post on X, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz described Tzvi Kogan’s killing as a "cowardly and despicable anti-Semitic terrorist crime".

Moldova said its embassy in Abu Dhabi was cooperating with local authorities and "closely monitoring the situation, providing the necessary support".

After latest Rabbi killing, Israel has renewed a warning for its citizens to avoid any non-essential travel to the UAE, and also advised Israelis already in the Gulf country to take extra precautions.