An “absolutely devastated” north London rabbi says his community is feeling a “sense of pain and grief” after the killing of two British-Israeli sisters in the occupied West Bank.
Maia and Rina Dee, reportedly aged 20 and 15 respectively, were shot dead when their car was attacked by Palestinian assailants near an Israeli settlement on Friday.
Their 45-year-old mother, Lucy Dee, was seriously wounded, while their father, Rabbi Leo Dee, witnessed the attack from a separate vehicle following behind.
Rabbi Dee was the senior rabbi at Radlett United Synagogue in Hertfordshire from 2011-2014 and assistant rabbi in Hendon, north London, from 2008-2011.
Mordechai Ginsbury, senior rabbi at Hendon United Synagogue, who has kept in contact with the family since they moved back to Israel in 2014, said he was feeling “absolute devastation, pain, grief and shock” following the tragedy.
He said the Dees are the “nicest, loveliest people” and he was “so, so sorry”.
He said: “To think that in a few moments, so senselessly and painfully, this has happened, such a tragic loss of life, of goodness, is just devastating.”
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Recalling the time they spent in the UK, Rabbi Ginsbury said: “They used to come to us at home. They were just a delightful family, full of commitment, vigour, passion, energy, and they did wonderful things for us in the community.”
He said he spoke to Rabbi Dee last night and “one of the things that is sustaining him is the blanket of warmth and love which is enveloping them within Israel and around the world”.
Rabbi Ginsbury said he was planning to hold a service of psalms and prayers on Sunday evening for people who “want to express their sense of pain, grief and solidarity with the Dees and with all the good and positive values that we, as Jewish people, stand for across the world and in Israel”.
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The shooting near the Hamra settlement – about 30 miles north of Jerusalem, came after Israel launched retaliatory air strikes at Lebanon and the Gaza Strip.
In a statement released to The Daily Telegraph by Rabbi Dee, he said he was confident “justice will be done” for his daughters’ deaths.
And he added the family was “saddened” by the current political situation in Israel.
“Some people think that a religious government will suppress minority rights and become totalitarian,” he said.
“But this is not a risk in Israel as religious Jews simply believe in balancing love and justice.
“For our part, we have felt a warm hug of love from Jews in Israel and beyond and we are confident that justice will be done.”
