The chief rabbi of Tel Aviv, Israel's former Ashkenazi chief rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau, has been appointed as new chairman of the Council of the Yad Vashem Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority in Jerusalem. "The issue of the Holocaust is close to Rabbi Lau's heart, and he sees in Holocaust remembrance both Jewish and universal values," Yad Vashem chairman Avner Shalev said in a statement.
Lau, a Holocaust survivor, succeeds Yossi Lapid, who died earlier this year. Lau served as Ashkenazi chief rabbi of Israel from 1993 to 2003, and in 2005 was elected chief rabbi of Tel Aviv. He is also the recipient of the Israel Prize, the country's highest civilian honor. The Yad Vashem council is an honorary body of 120 people which meets once a year.
