Chabad: Allow Indian nanny to immigrate to Israel

On Friday two-year-old Moshe Holtzberg was orphaned of both his parents, Chabad emissaries to Mumbai. Now both his family and the ultra-Orthodox organization are asking that his savior, Sandra Samuel, be allowed to come to Israel
Ynet

Chairman of 'Agudas Chasidei Chabad,' Rabbi Yosef Yitzhak Aharonov, has called for Israel to allow the Indian caretaker who saved toddler Moshe Holtzberg from the besieged Chabad center in Mumbai to immigrate.
Sandra Samuel grabbed the toddler, who turned two on Saturday, as terrorists stormed the ultra-Orthodox center and escaped with him in her arms. Both of Moshe's parents, Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife Rivka, were murdered.



"I've spoken to the people in India, we've asked them to arrange the visa. The request has also come from the emissary's (Holtzberg) father and Rivka's mother. At this point she's the only one the boy is responding to," Aharonov told Ynet.



The Holtzberg family is keen to see the nanny, who is very close to the toddler, come back to Israel with him. Their only concern is the bureaucratic hurdle.

Chabad spokesman, Rabbi Menachem Brod: "Rabbi Aharonov spoke with the grandfather and grandmother, and they both feel the nanny should come with the child. But there is paperwork to arrange. We ask the government to work towards bringing her here.



Samuel is currently staying with Moshe at the home of Ehud Raz, the top security officer at the Israeli Consulate in Mumbai. The toddler's maternal grandparents are also with him, having rushed to India from Israel as news of the crisis emerged.



"In the evening his mother always puts him to sleep and now he doesn't understand what's going on," Samuel said. Regarding the attack on the Chabad center she said, "It was terrible, there were explosions everywhere, gunfire – they tried to shoot me.

Chabad hero nanny heading to Israel

Nov. 30, 2008
JPost.com Staff , THE JERUSALEM POST

Sandra, the nanny who rescued two-year-old Moshe Holtzberg from the Islamic terrorists that stormed the Chabad House in Mumbai, is expected to arrive in Israel on Monday and be granted entry by the Interior Ministry.

Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said on Sunday that her office was working to arrange Sandra's visit to Israel.

Army Radio that the Interior Ministry was considering bestowing Sandra the 'righteous gentile' title, which would allow her to remain in Israel for an extended period of time.

The toddler was reunited with his Israeli grandparents, Shimon and Yehudit Rosenberg, on Friday.

Moshe's parents, Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg, were killed in the Chabad House massacre together with at least four others.

Israeli media reported that some of the victims were found wrapped in prayer shawls, in accordance with Jewish burial tradition. The reports speculated that one of the hostages had wrapped the bodies before he was killed.

According to unconfirmed reports attributed to Indian security sources, most of the hostages were found bound and gagged by the commandos, and had been shot long before Indian forces landed on the roof from a helicopter on Thursday night.

Speaking from the Israeli Consulate in Mumbai, Foreign Ministry official Haim Hoshen told the Post on Saturday that there was no doubt the Chabad House was the target of a premeditated and planned assault.

Yaakov Lappin contributed to this report.