Avichai Rontzki, a former IDF chief rabbi, has died at the age of 66 after a battle with cancer.
Rontzki, from the settlement of Itamar, served as chief rabbi of the army from 2006 to 2010 and later made an unsuccessful bid for the Knesset.
Naftali Bennett (r) with former IDF chief rabbi Avichai Rontzki. (Yossi Zeliger/Flash90)
Politicians, mainly from the right, are eulogizing him ahead of his funeral, scheduled for 5 p.m.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calls him a “fighter and sage, who loved the people of Israel and the Land of Israel.”
Jewish Home head Naftali Bennett praises Ronski as a “daring commander” for his service in the Yom Kippur War of 1973.
“He was an educator and a leader, but for me he was mainly a teacher and a partner. … You’re already missed,” he says.
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
From the Liveblog of
Sunday, April 1, 2018
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
