Chabad Rabbi killed in India

My thoughts and prayers are with those of the families and friends of Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife, Rivka.

JTA:

A Chabad rabbi and his wife were among the dead after Indian forces retook a Jewish center in Mumbai, India from terrorist gunmen.

The deaths of Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife, Rivka, the Chabad emissaries in Mumbai, were confirmed Friday by the director of American Friends of Lubavitch, Rabbi Levi Shemtov. Three other Israelis in the building were also killed; their names were not released.

Conflicting reports following the takeover of Mumbai's Chabad-Lubavitch house in the terrorist attacks in India, which left more than 140 dead, prompted confusion and anxiety surrounding the fate of the house's occupants, including the Holtzbergs.

Four Israelis were among those freed from the Trident-Oberoi luxury hotel along with other hostages late Friday morning, according to the Israeli Foreign Ministry.

Gunmen armed with automatic rifles and grenades struck 10 separate locations in Mumbai on Wednesday night in coordinated attacks at sites frequented by Westerners, including hotels, restaurants and a railway station. Witnesses said the gunmen -- who killed more than 140 people, set buildings ablaze and took hostages -- targeted Americans, Britons and Jews. Mumbai's Chabad house was among the targets.