Two from Virginia killed in Mumbai mayhem

MUMBAI, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- A Virginia man and his daughter and a former New York rabbi and his wife were among those killed in the terror attacks in Mumbai, India, officials said Friday.

The two victims from Virginia were identified as Alan Scherr, 58, and Naomi Scherr, 13, members of Synchronicity, a spiritual community that promotes high-tech meditation and a holistic lifestyle, The Washington Post reported. They were in India on a spiritual mission with about two dozen others.

President George Bush issued a statement, saying he was "deeply saddened that at least two Americans were killed and others injured" in Mumbai.

"We also mourn the great loss of life suffered by so many people from several other countries, and we have the wounded in our thoughts and prayers," Bush said.

Also killed were Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife Rivka, who had left New York's Chabad-Lubavitch movement in 2003 to manage Nariman House, a Jewish outreach center in Mumbai that was among the terrorists' targets, The New York Times reported. The couple were Israeli born but had lived in New York.

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg expressed his condolences.

"This is a tragic loss for the Lubavitch community, and for our entire city," Bloomberg said. "That their son survived is a miracle, and our entire city is grateful for his nanny's heroic act. During a time of terrible sadness, her courage reaffirms our faith in the capacity of good to triumph over evil."