The Chanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, turned tragic on Sunday when a terror attack left at least 15 people dead and dozens injured. Among the critically injured was 20-year-old Leibel Lazaroff (Yehudah Leib ben Manya), from College Station, who had traveled to Sydney less than six weeks ago on shlichus with Chabad of Bondi.

Speaking with multiple media outlets, his uncle, shliach Rabbi Chaim Lazaroff, director of Chabad of Houston, shared both the personal anguish of his family and the broader message of Jewish resilience:

“My sister-in-law posted that they couldn’t reach him,” he shared in an interview with Click2Houston, “and an hour later we got word that he was one of the victims in the attack and was critically injured in the hospital.”

Leibel’s parents have since traveled to Sydney, and the family reports that he has awakened and is communicating from the intensive care unit. Rabbi Lazaroff described him as “a vibrant, wonderful young man who never deserved to go through such a tragedy.”

“Our hearts are with all those wounded,” Rabbi Lazaroff told Fox 26. He added: “Our hearts are with all those wounded, including my nephew, a young man of great energy who is always there to help the community and volunteer. To hear that he was in the midst of the attack while volunteering alongside everyone else is heartbreaking.”

Speaking to KHOU/Channel 11, Rabbi Lazaroff emphasized Leibel’s dedication to others: “He was there for the year to volunteer and to give up his time, because it’s a central part of our ideology. You’re not here in this world just to live for yourself; you’re here to live to give to someone else. And so he was there to strengthen the communities.”

He also reflected on the death of fellow shliach Rabbi Eli Schlanger HYD, director of Chabad of Bondi, calling on leaders to confront antisemitism decisively: “It’s up to the leaders to speak up and say we will not tolerate antisemitism of any form… Terrorism is definitely not an option and not something that can be accepted by anyone.”

“The response to terror and hate – since the days of the Maccabees – has been to stand taller, spread more light, and not back down,” Rabbi Lazaroff wrote in an opinion piece for the Houston Chronicle: “In the face of oppression and tyranny, our ancestors didn’t accept the status quo or make themselves smaller. They stuck to the truth and, with Hashem’s help, defeated a much larger force of negativity and oppression.”

He called on the community to continue celebrating Chanukah publicly: “Even though we are still in shock, and even though we are still mourning, we know that the only response is to expand our light. Not because it is necessarily the safe or easy option. But because shrinking, hiding, or turning inward is antithetical to what the holiday we are celebrating stands for.”

Rabbi Lazaroff highlighted the menorah’s lesson: “On the first night of Chanukah, we light just one candle, adding an additional one until all eight are lit on the final night. We learn from this that it’s never enough to just spread light – we must always be growing the light, too.”

He urged families to light menorahs, attend public celebrations, and reach out to those without companions, reinforcing Jewish pride and communal responsibility.

In all interviews, he emphasized confronting darkness with light: “When we have people trying to extinguish the light of the Jewish people, we will just burn bigger and brighter. Chanukah will burn on, and the Jewish people will continue to be here.”

He confirmed that over 40 events around Houston will continue with increased security, demonstrating the community’s resilience.

Leibel Lazaroff is still in the hospital, where he is undergoing extensive surgeries and treatment.

Click here to donate to his recovery fund.

Cashapp $ChabadTAMU
Zelle [email protected]