Veteran Israeli News Anchor Chokes Up Sharing Family Roots During Hanukkah Studio Visit

Following the death of veteran Israeli news anchor Chaim Yavin, journalist Uri Revach shared a poignant behind-the-scenes memory from the Israeli Broadcasting Authority studios in Jerusalem. The story took place around Hanukkah in 2002, when Revach brought two young yeshiva students from Chabad's Torat Emet in Jerusalem to light Hanukkah candles with the newsroom staff. Just before the main news broadcast, Yavin joined them to light the seventh candle and engaged the students in a discussion about the Hanukkah lighting custom.

One student, whose father was a prominent rabbinical head, promised to explain why an additional candle is lit each day rather than all at once. The next day, the students returned to the studio to light the eighth candle with Yavin, who listened intently to the student's halachic explanation that "we increase in holiness and light each day." At that moment, Yavin unexpectedly became emotional, tears welling in his eyes.

Yavin then revealed to those present a lesser-known aspect of his background: he came from a distinguished rabbinical family. He shared that his grandfather was Rabbi Kloger, a Torah scholar and prolific author of religious articles and teachings. This heartfelt disclosure, coupled with the emotional scene of Yavin lighting the Hanukkah candles, left a strong impression on everyone in the studio, highlighting his deep Jewish roots beneath his public secular image.