Rabbi goes missing in United Arab Emirates and Israel fears Iran is to blame

Rabbi Zvi Kogan, a leading figure in the ultra-Orthodox Jewish Chabad movement, disappeared in the United Arab Emirates last Thursday, and Israeli authorities are treating the case as a possible act of terrorism.

According to Israeli officials, there are suspicions that the rabbi may have been kidnapped as part of a plan by Tehran to avenge Israel's Oct. 26 airstrikes against Iranian military targets.

Joint investigations and suspicions of murder

The Israeli intelligence agency Mossad is working closely with Emirati authorities in an investigation described as "extensive." Meanwhile, the Emirati Interior Ministry confirmed that it is implementing "extensive measures" in the search for the rabbi, although it avoided referring to his Israeli citizenship.

The Ynet portal reported that Kogan's car was found abandoned in Al Ain, some 93 miles (150 km) from Abu Dhabi. Security sources cited by this media outlet point to the possibility that Kogan was assaulted by Uzbek nationals, who then subsequently fled to Turkey. According to the Walla website, Israeli intelligence suspects that Kogan was being watched by Iranian agents before his disappearance.

Context of tensions between Israel and Iran

This incident occurs in a context of heightened tension between Israel and Iran. The two countries have escalated their indirect confrontations and military attacks in recent months. Israel has accused Tehran of attempting to harm Israeli and Jewish citizens abroad, using networks of agents to carry out targeted attacks.

In late October, Israel carried out a series of strikes against Iranian military infrastructure, a response to drone and ballistic missile aggressions by Iran. These hostilities are part of a broader escalation that also includes attacks against Iranian allies in Syria and Lebanon.

A community leader

Zvi Kogan, an Israeli and Moldovan citizen, has been a central figure in Abu Dhabi's Jewish community since the normalization of relations between Israel and the Emirates in 2020 under the Abraham Accords. His work included organizing the first ceremony in the Emirates for Holocaust Remembrance Day in 2021, a significant event in the region.

The rabbi is also nephew of Gavriel Holtzberg, who, along with his wife, was killed in the 2008 Chabad House terror attack in Mumbai, an event that scarred the global Jewish community.

Security warnings

Israel's National Security Council reiterated the recommendation to avoid non-essential travel to the United Arab Emirates, citing security risks. This advice takes on relevance at a time when Israel is on high alert for possible Iranian retaliation.