Sydney Attack Victim: Alex Kleytman HYD

By COLlive reporter

Alex Kleytman, a Holocaust survivor and beloved father and grandfather, was confirmed as one of the victims of the terror attack on Chabad’s Chanukah event in Bondi, Sydney, Australia on Sunday.

Kleytman, a retired civil engineer, was at Bondi Beach for the annual Chanukah at the Sea celebration when he was tragically shot to death by gunshots in a terror attack on the first night of Chanukah.

“I think he was shot because he raised himself up to protect me,” his wife Larisa, who was married to her husband for five decades, told the media.

She said: “He came to Bondi Beach to celebrate Chanukah, for us it was always a very, very good celebration, for many, many years. Today, in the middle of the celebrations, there were shots, and unfortunately, my husband was killed.

“We were standing and suddenly came the ‘boom boom’, and everybody fell down,” she added. “At this moment, he was behind me, and at one moment, he decided to go close to me; he pushed his body up because he wanted to stay near me.”

Larisa and her late husband came to Australia from Ukraine and shared two children and 11 grandchildren.

Baruch Dayan Ha’emes. Hashem Yikom Damo.