About 600 people attended the funeral Wednesday morning, of a member of Rome’s Jewish community who was stabbed in the heart, his body found outside his home earlier this week.
Raphael Cohen, 74, lived in the Nomentano quarter in Rome, Italy.
Originally from Tripoli, “Mr. Cohen was a prominent member of the Libyan community in Rome and a dear friend, very beloved by all who knew him,” Rabbi Yitzchok Hazan Chabad representative to the Italian capital told lubavich.com
At the time of the murder, Israel’s PM Benjamin Netanyahu was in Rome visiting with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, though the incident seems unrelated to the Prime Minister of Israel’s visit.
Mr. Cohen’s wallet was found with him, untouched, so police ruled out robbery as a motive.
The Libyan Jewish community in Rome released the following statement: “The community of Jews in Rome of Libyan origin is profoundly shocked by the violent and tragic loss of the most beloved of its members.”
Mr. Cohen is survived by three sons, and his wife. The statement described him as an exemplar of kindness and generosity, who contributed in many ways to the vitality of the local Jewish community.
“Rafi lived in Tripoli, then in Israel and then in Rome to make it possible for his wife Golda to be close to her family Naman.”
Rabbi Menachem Lazar, a Chabad emissary in Rome, told lubavitch.com, “We are all shocked, at first it seemed that he had a heart attack. But when the doctor arrived we realized that something else happened”.
Friends and family members gathered outside Rafi’s apartment building where he was found, waiting there until the early hours of the morning, Lazar said, when the police took him out.
“This is a shock for all of us,” he said. “Rafi always was a very kind person. He helped out in Shul, as do his children Sami, Yoni and Roi.”
The Libyan Jewish community in Rome numbers approximately 2000 people.
Chief Rabbi of Rome, Dr. Riccardo Di Segni and Rabbi Yitzchok Hazan eulogized Mr. Cohen at his funeral, at the Verano Jewish Cemetery in Rome.
I know Raffi personally, he was a wonderful person, that is a big lost for Roma an a good example of Jewish culture
Un ebreo libanese da Roma è stato ucciso nella portineria del suo palazzo,non per rapina,Refael hacohen Cohen.
H’ Yikom Damo
i didnt understand what happened ??
baruch dayan haemes
hashem yinkom damo!
So scary!!