Holocaust Survivor Dies a Hero Shielding Wife in Hanukkah Massacre

The gunfire began just as the candles were being lit.

Eighty-six-year-old Holocaust survivor Alex Kleytman was standing beside his wife of 57 years, Larissa, when two men dressed in black opened fire at Sydney’s Bondi Beach during a crowded Hanukkah celebration on Sunday night.

In her trembling voice, Larissa recounted the horror to local reporters.
“We were standing and suddenly came the ‘boom boom,’ and everybody fell down,” she said outside St. Vincent’s Hospital, her face pale and eyes red from tears.

According to family members, Alex’s final act was to throw himself over his wife — shielding her body with his own as the bullets tore through the festive crowd.
“He wanted to stay near me,” Larissa said quietly. “He pushed his body close. Then… he was gone.”

Alex and Larissa were both Holocaust survivors from Ukraine. They met as young adults and later emigrated to Australia, where they built a quiet life in Sydney’s southeastern suburbs. Alex worked as a civil engineer; Larissa was active in Jewish community outreach.

In a 2023 interview with the charity JewishCare, the couple reflected on their wartime memories. “As children, both Larisa and Alexander faced the unspeakable terror of the Holocaust,” the charity’s annual report noted. “Alex’s memories were particularly harrowing — recalling the dreadful conditions in Siberia, where he, his mother, and brother struggled for survival.”

Despite those horrors, the pair became symbols of resilience in Sydney’s Jewish community. “They believed in joy,” a family friend told the Sydney Morning Herald. “Hanukkah was their favorite holiday. They saw light as victory over darkness — that was their story.”

Authorities say at least 15 people were killed and 29 wounded in the attack, which took place as nearly 2,000 people gathered to mark the first night of Hanukkah. Witnesses reported chaos and panic as the gunmen fired from a bridge overlooking the beachfront celebration.

Video obtained by Sky News shows one of the shooters moving swiftly through the crowd, firing indiscriminately. Police said the attackers were “neutralized” after a fierce exchange of gunfire. Investigators are treating the case as a terrorist act motivated by antisemitism.

“I have no husband,” Larissa said as she was escorted from the hospital. “I don’t know… nobody can give me any answers.”

The Jewish community in Sydney and beyond is in mourning. Rabbi David Freedman, who leads a nearby congregation, called Alex “a man of profound strength who had already survived one genocide — only to face hatred again in his final moments.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the attack as “an act of pure evil.” President Donald Trump, who is currently on a state visit to Israel, issued a statement of solidarity: “The people of the United States stand shoulder to shoulder with Australia and the Jewish people against the scourge of terror.”

As night fell over Bondi, mourners placed candles and flowers where Alex died protecting the woman he loved.

“Alex lived through one darkness and brought light wherever he went,” said one attendee through tears. “He died doing the same.”

Source: Australian Federal Police, The Australian, JewishCare Annual Report, Sky News, Sydney Morning Herald.