I received the following note from Devori Kleytman, who asked me to share the story of her father-in-law, Alexander Kleytman, one of the victims of the [Chanukah] terrorist attack at Bondi Beach, Australia.
“My beloved father-in-law, Alexander, was 87 years old, a Holocaust survivor whose family fled to Siberia when he was still a child. They endured years of hunger and bitter cold. They survived, and eventually returned to Ukraine.
“Later, Alexander and his wife, Larisa, applied to emigrate to Israel. They were refused. For many long years, they lived as refuseniks, trapped behind the Iron Curtain, longing to leave and longing for Zion.
“Alexander was a man of integrity and a proud Jew. He loved the Land of Israel and the Jewish people. He wrote two books about his Holocaust experiences, and he would often say that we must remember the Holocaust, not only as history, but as a moral obligation so that we know how to stand up to our enemies.
“He was deeply connected to faith. In recent years he began wearing a kippah and putting on tefillin.
“Alexander was murdered while doing what he loved most: living as a Jew, among his people. He died while protecting his wife Larisa, who survived the attack. Alexander and Larisa were devoted to one another for more than fifty years, and they were blessed with children and grandchildren.
“We believe that Alexander’s story is not one that began under Nazi persecution and ended with Islamic terror. His story is about life, love, faith, and holiness. We look forward to continuing his legacy, and we ask anyone reading these words to do one good deed today in memory of Alexander ben Simcha.”
Reprinted from the January 30, 2026 website of The Jewish Press.
