‘The pain grows,’ says father of Mumbai victim

JERUSALEM (JTA) — The father of a Chabad emissary killed in Mumbai spoke of his family’s pain at a ceremony in memory of Jewish victims of terror attacks.

Rabbi Shimon Rosenberg, whose daughter, Rivka Holtzberg, was killed with her husband, Gavriel, in a terror attack last November, spoke to bereaved families during Tuesday afternoon’s ceremony at Mount Herzl.

"This year, me and my wife, Yehudit, and all our whole family have joined the bereavement family, the pain and yearning which never let go — and with every day that passes the pain grows," he said. "On the other hand, our faith and confidence in the Holy One ,blessed be He, is what gives us the power and moral strength to face all the difficulties."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose brother Yonatan was killed in action during Israel’s successful raid on the Entebbe Airport in Uganda to free Israeli hostages after a hijacking, addressed the ceremony.

"As the member of a bereaved family, I recognize and know your pain, the pain that accompanies the family members every day, and is not focused on a particular day or event. Today, Remembrance Day for the Fallen of Israel’s Wars and those who fell in terrorist attacks, the entire State of Israel bows its head with you and to you, salutes the fallen and embraces you."

Netanyahu said terror today is more dangerous than ever.

"Those who crush a baby’s skull don’t want human rights. Those who blow up a bus filled with children don’t want peace," he said. "If the terrorists could have their way, they would do to all the citizens of Israel what they did to some of them, and therefore we have no choice but to fight terror to the knife and defend our lives."

Israel’s Memorial Day ends Tuesday night with the start of Independence Day.