He had been in a coma since the attack at Tel Hashomer hospital in Ramat Gan, Israel, and never regained consciousness.
By TAMARA ZIEVEUpdated: APRIL 18, 2017 00:33Chabad Rabbi brutally beaten in Zhitomir(photo credit: TWITTER)
Chabad Rabbi Menachem Mendel Deitsch was buried in Jerusalem on Sunday, after having succumbed to wounds sustained last October when he was severely beaten in the western city of Zhitomir, Ukraine.Deitsch died on Saturday at the age of 64, leaving behind a wife, 11 children and three brothers. The funeral procession began at Shamgar funeral home and ended at the Mount of Olives, where Deitsch was buried.Chabad remembered Deitsch for his efforts to strengthen Jewish life in France, Israel and the former Soviet Union. He was also a central organizer of hospitality and programming at the burial site of Chabad’s founder, Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, in Haditch, Ukraine.The rabbi was beaten and robbed of his cellphone and money six months ago at the central train station in Zhitomir after spending Rosh Hashana in Haditch. He was discovered the next morning and was admitted to the intensive-care unit at a regional hospital, where he was diagnosed with multiple head injuries and brain trauma.After undergoing emergency surgery, he was airlifted to Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer. He remained in a coma and his condition began to deteriorate in recent weeks.Two men and two women were arrested for the assault two weeks after it occurred.