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Ya'akov Yosef

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Ya'akov Yosef
Yosef in June 2008
Faction represented in the Knesset
1984–1988Shas
Personal details
Born(1946-10-18)18 October 1946
Jerusalem, Mandatory Palestine
Died(2013-04-12)12 April 2013 (Aged 66)
Jerusalem

Ya'akov Yosef (Hebrew: יעקב יוסף‎; 18 October 1946 – 12 April 2013)[1] was an Israeli rabbi and politician who served as a member of the Knesset for Shas between 1984 and 1988.

Early life

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Ya'akov Yosef (Jacob Joseph) was born in Jerusalem towards the end of the Mandate era, the second child (oldest son) of Ovadia Yosef, a prominent rabbi.[2] He was educated in the Porat Yosef and Kol Torah yeshivas in Bayit VeGan. He was later certified as a rabbi at the Rav Kook Institute.

Political Career

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In the early 1980s, Yosef became a member of the new Shas party founded by his father, and represented it on Jerusalem city council between 1983 and 1984.[3] In 1984, he was elected to the Knesset on the Shas list, and sat on the Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, the Education and Culture Committee and the Parliamentary Inquiry Committee for Traffic Accidents, until he was removed from the Shas electoral list for the 1988 elections, at his father's behest.[4] He later dissented from his father's political positions, especially as relates to peace negotiations with Palestinians.

In 2008, he said that Shas had "lost its moral right to exist" because of its participation in governments that engaged in these negotiations.[5] Yosef was detained by police under suspicion of incitement to violence and racism, after he wrote an approbation for a book that justifies the killing of non-Jews.[6]

His son, Yonatan Yosef, a prominent Jerusalem rabbi,[7][8] is the spokesman for Jewish Settlers in Sheikh Jarrah,[9] and a prominent activists for the Judaization of East Jerusalem.[10] In 2013, Yonatan ran for Jerusalem City Council.[11]

Rabbinic career

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He was the head of the Hazon Ya'akov yeshiva (which is named after his grandfather), and the rabbi for the Givat Moshe neighbourhood in Jerusalem. His brother, Avraham, was the chief rabbi of Holon.[12]

In 2004, his father overruled one of Yosef's Halakhic rulings, which forbade soldiers from eating food provided by the army, condemning it as "inciteful."[13]

Controversy

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On 3 July 2011, Yosef was arrested on suspicion of incitement to racism for his endorsement of the book The King's Torah, after he failed to report to the police for questioning, and released shortly thereafter.[14] The arrest and questioning sparked protests among his supporters.[15]

In November 2012, during Operation Pillar of Defense, Yosef said in a sermon in Hebron, West Bank: "The IDF [Israeli Defence Forces] must learn from the Syrians how to slaughter and crush the enemy."[16][17][18]

Illness and death

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On 12 April 2013, at the age of 66, Yosef died in Jerusalem's Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital around a year after being diagnosed with cancer.[1] He was buried in the Har Hamenuchot cemetery.

References

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  1. ^ a b Benari, Elad (12 April 2013). "Rabbi Yaakov Yosef Passes Away". Arutz Sheva, (Israel National News). Archived from the original on 14 April 2013. Retrieved 13 April 2013. Rabbi Yaakov Chai Yosef, rabbi of the Givat Moshe neighborhood of Jerusalem and son of Shas's spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, Shlita, passed away on Friday afternoon at the Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital.
  2. ^ Brackman, Levi (3 May 2009). "Rabbi: Older bachelors must leave Jerusalem". Ynetnews. Retrieved 4 May 2009.
  3. ^ Yaakov Yosef: Public Activities Knesset website
  4. ^ "Rabbi's rebel son is behind race lawsuit". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 10 February 2024.
  5. ^ Weiss, Efrat. "בן הרב עובדיה סוגר חשבון עם ש"ס ומחפש מפלגה". ynet. Retrieved 10 February 2024.
  6. ^ Hasson, Nir; Kubovich, Yaniv; Haaretz. "Son of Shas Spiritual Leader Probed for Incitement to Racism". Haaretz. Retrieved 10 February 2024.
  7. ^ Ross, Adam (18 September 2013). "King has New List". Arutz Sheva.
  8. ^ "Rav Ovadia's Grandson Enters Jerusalem Race". Yeshiva World News. 17 September 2013.
  9. ^ Hasson, Nir (24 June 2010). "The Orthodox Jews fighting the Judaization of East Jerusalem". Haaretz.
  10. ^ "Rabbi Yaakov Yosef, son of Shas spiritual leader Ovadia Yosef, dies at 66". Haaretz. 12 April 2013.
  11. ^ "Jerusalem Mayor Candidates to Address English Speakers". Arutz Sheva. 27 September 2013.
  12. ^ Ettinger, Yair (24 September 2008). "Religious Zionists could gain historic foothold in rabbinate". Haaretz. Retrieved 5 May 2009.
  13. ^ Rabbi Yosef Dismisses his Son's Halachic Ruling Israel National News, 14 March 2004
  14. ^ Nir Hasson, Yaniv Kubovich and Haaretz (3 July 2011). "Son of Shas spiritual leader probed for incitement to racism". Haaretz. Retrieved 3 July 2011.
  15. ^ "Arrest of Rabbi Yaakov Yosef sparks haredi Orthodox protests". JTA. 3 July 2011. Archived from the original on 7 July 2011. Retrieved 3 July 2011.
  16. ^ Loewenstein, Antony; Caro, Jane; Woodlock, Rachel; Smart, Simon (2013). For God's Sake. Macmillan Australia. p. 236. ISBN 9781743289136.
  17. ^ York, Chris (19 November 2013). "Israel Gaza Conflict: Rhetoric From Gilad Sharon, Rabbi Yaakov Yosef, Hamas And Eli Yishai". Huffington Post. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
  18. ^ Black, Ian (22 November 2013). "Gaza ceasefire: Syria's shrinking influence now exposed". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
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