Jewish guard murdered in Copenhagen 'had a message of love'

Under heavy security, hundreds of people on Wednesday attended the funeral of Dan Uzan, the Jewish volunteer security guard who was killed in the Copenhagen shootings last weekend.

Among the mourners were family, friends, representatives of the Jewish community and the Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt.

Security was tight, with police dogs on the grounds and snipers on nearby rooftops, according to local media.


Credit: Reuters

Uzan, 37, was killed outside Copenhagen’s main synagogue while securing a bat mitzvah event in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The gunman, reported in Danish media to be Omar Abdel Hamid El-Hussein, first attacked a cafe hosting a free speech event on Saturday afternoon, probably trying to kill Lars Vilks, a Swedish artist who has received death threats for his drawings satirizing the Prophet Muhammad.

Hours later, the gunman attacked the synagogue, killing Uzan. The gunman was then killed in a shootout with police early Sunday.

Denmark's Chief Rabbi Jair Melchior called on people to talk to each other and acknowledge differences in the aftermath of the shootings.

"I don't have a message for the Muslim community, I have a message for people, all people, that we have to do things differently, talk to each other, meet each other, know each other in our differences -- we shouldn't be all the same," he said.

Melchior also urged people to "do good."

"If you want to do good, start doing that, make a change, make a difference, do exactly like Dan (Uzan) did in his life, not in his death, in his life, his every day," he said. "This is our message. This is Dan's message to everyone around."

Hana Bentov, the girl whose bat mitzvah Uzan was securing, arrived at the funeral with her parents and brother and said, "Dan is our hero. My eight-year-old brother Elias says that Dan was very brave and that now, like before, he is watching over us, only this time it's from heaven.

"People have been asking me if I am sad that my bat mitzvah party was ruined and I tell them that my party is not important -- the only thing important is to remember Dan."

Dan Uzan's father, Serge Uzan, said, "We are very sad, but we want the world to know that Dan's message was one of love. A message that said 'now is not a time for hate, because hate has nothing good to give the world.' I am sure that if he were here right now he would say that now more than ever we should be good to each other and spread love.

"My son accepted everybody regardless of race, gender or religion and everybody loved him."

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