Turkish President offers condolences to Jewish community over Chief Rabbi's death

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan extended his condolences to the Jewish community on the passing of Ishak Haleva, the Chief Rabbi of the Jewish Community in Türkiye.

A farewell ceremony for Rabbi Haleva will be held on January 16 at the Central Synagogue in Istanbul, where members of the community will gather to honor his memory, Caliber.Az reports citing Israeli media.

Rabbi Haleva had served as the Chief Rabbi of Türkiye since 2002, succeeding David Asseo. In addition to his leadership role, Haleva was an active member of the Presidium Council of the Alliance of Rabbis in Islamic States. He also contributed to academia, lecturing on Jewish history and Hebrew at Marmara University and Sakarya University.

The Turkish Jewish community, which numbers approximately 14,500, has expressed deep sorrow over his passing, paying tribute to his well-loved character and his efforts to promote interfaith dialogue. His contributions to fostering understanding between different religious communities were widely recognized.

Born in Istanbul in 1940, Haleva was ordained as a rabbi in Israel, where he studied at Yeshiva Porat Yosef in Jerusalem under the guidance of former Chief Rabbi Ovadia Yosef.

By Vafa Guliyeva