UAE Rabbi Announces Birth of Baby Girl to Widow of Murdered Jewish Leader

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – In a powerful moment of light emerging from darkness, Rabbi Levi Duchman, Chief Rabbi of the United Arab Emirates, announced the birth of a baby girl to Rivky Kogan, widow of Rabbi Zvi Hakohen Kogan HY”D, who was brutally murdered last year in a terror attack that shocked Jewish communities around the world.

Rabbi Duchman, who worked closely with Reb Zvi and considered him both a partner and a friend, called the newborn “a continuation” of her father’s sacred mission. “Today, the world became a better place,” he wrote in a message shared widely on social media. “May Rivky and Reb Zvi’s daughter bring hope, joy, and endless love to her family and to all those around her.”

Today, the world became a better place.

We congratulate Rivky Kogan and her family on welcoming a new light into their lives—and into all of ours—a baby girl, a continuation of her late father, Reb Zvi Hakohen Kogan HY”D, who was brutally murdered and whose life’s mission…

— Rabbi Levi Duchman ‎ حاخام ليفي دوخمان (@RabbiUAE) April 17, 2025

Reb Zvi, only 28 years old, was abducted and murdered in November 2024 in what authorities confirmed was an antisemitic terrorist attack. The assailants—three Uzbek nationals—were captured and sentenced to death by a UAE court earlier this year. His murder stunned the small but growing Jewish community in the Gulf, where he had been serving as a Chabad emissary, managing a kosher supermarket and helping to build the country’s first Jewish educational center.

Despite the unbearable loss, Rivky Kogan remained in the UAE, supported by the community her late husband helped nurture. The birth of their daughter just days before Passover—a holiday of freedom and renewal—has taken on profound symbolic meaning.

“From the ashes of tragedy, a new light rises,” said Rabbi Duchman. “This child carries within her the legacy of her father’s courage, kindness, and unwavering devotion to his people.”

The story of the Kogan family continues to inspire, a reminder of the enduring strength of the Jewish spirit—even in the face of unspeakable pain. As the nation celebrates Passover, the birth of this child offers a glimpse of redemption not just for one family, but for an entire people.