At the beginning of last week, Isaac Raphael Zadeh, a leading member of the Almaty Jewish community, was found dead in his car close to his home. He had been shot in the head. Mr. Zadeh was aged 55. The members of the community are finding it hard to accept that this murder took place in broad daylight. They are mourning the loss of a very pleasant individual who was well-loved by everyone. The police have launched an enquiry, but so far it is not clear whether the motive for the murder was anti-Semitism or something else.
Kazakhstan’s Chevra Kaddisha (Jewish Burial Society) managed to get the body released early for the funeral in accordance with Jewish law. The funeral, which took place the following day, began at the Beit Menachem Chabad Lubavitch Jewish Center, and ended at the Jewish cemetery. Hundreds of local Jews came to pay their last respects.
Shliach Rabbi Betzalel Lifschitz described what happened:
“As soon as we heard this terrible news, hundreds of local Jews gathered at the Chabad Center. Isaac was known as a generous man who always knew when to be there and to help in every way. He devoted many years to the Jewish community and knew how to treat others with respect. It is terribly sad to think that such a man was a victim.”
After the funeral, relatives and friends gathered at the Levi Yitzchok Shul at the Chabad Center for a mourners’ meal. During the shiva, many local Jews met at the shul and the family’s home to recite Kaddish and do other good deeds in Isaac’s memory. May his memory be blessed.
