Avraham Yosef Shapira ( he, אברהם יוסף שפירא, 2 March 1921 – 26 June 2000) was an Israeli politician and businessman.

Biography

Born in Romania in 1921, Shapira attended the Kokhav MeYa'akov

yeshiva A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are stu ...

Trzebinia Trzebinia (; yi, טשעבין ''Tchebin'') is a town in Chrzanów County, Lesser Poland, Poland with an Orlen oil refinery and a major rail junction of the Kraków - Katowice line, with connections to Oświęcim and Spytkowice. The town bec ...

, and was later certified as a teacher.Avraham Yosef Schapira: Personal Details
Knesset He made

aliyah Aliyah (, ; he, עֲלִיָּה ''ʿălīyyā'', ) is the immigration of Jews from the diaspora to, historically, the geographical Land of Israel, which is in the modern era chiefly represented by the State of Israel. Traditionally descri ...

to Israel in 1949, and began working with his father, a furrier. In 1959 he bought a carpet factory, Carmel Carpets, in

Or Akiva Or Akiva ( he, אוֹר עֲקִיבָא) (''light of Akiva''–in memory of Rabbi Akiva who was tortured and killed at this locale) is a city located in the Haifa District of Israel, on the country's coastal plain. It is located just inland f ...

. At its peak the business employed 1,600 employees and had an annual turnover of $500 million.Avraham Shapira: Religious powerbroker of Israel's turbulent politics
The Guardian, 4 July 2000 He joined

Agudat Yisrael Agudat Yisrael ( he, אֲגוּדָּת יִשְׂרָאֵל, lit., ''Union of Israel'', also transliterated ''Agudath Israel'', or, in Yiddish, ''Agudas Yisroel'') is a Haredi Jewish political party in Israel. It began as a political party re ...

, and became chairman of its

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

branch. He was elected to the Knesset on the party's list in

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major off ...

and became chairman of the governing coalition. He was re-elected in

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast As ...

, after which he chaired the Finance Committee. He also served as chairman of the

Bank of Israel The Bank of Israel ( he, בנק ישראל, ar, بنك إسرائيل) is the central bank of Israel. The bank's headquarters is located in Kiryat HaMemshala in Jerusalem with a branch office in Tel Aviv. The current governor is Amir Yaron. T ...

's steering committee,Avraham Yosef Schapira: Public Activities
Knesset website wielding a strong influence on the country's financial state. He lost his seat in the

1988 elections The following elections occurred in the year 1988. Africa * 1988 Cameroonian general election * 1988 Equatorial Guinean legislative election * 1988 Kenyan general election * 1988 Malian parliamentary election * 1988 Rwandan parliamentary elect ...

, but returned to the Knesset in

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment building in Amsterdam after two of its engines ...

(by which time the party had formed the United Torah Judaism alliance with

Degel HaTorah Degel HaTorah ( he, דגל התורה, , Banner of the Torah) is an Ashkenazi Haredi political party in Israel. For much of its existence, it has been allied with Agudat Yisrael, under the name United Torah Judaism. History Degel HaTorah ...

). He lost his seat again in the

1996 elections The following elections occurred in the year 1996. * 1995–1996 Azerbaijani parliamentary election * 1996 Beninese presidential election * 1996 Comorian presidential election * 1996 New Zealand general election * 1996 Nicaraguan general electio ...

. He died in 2000 at the age of 79.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shapira, Avraham Yosef 1921 births 2000 deaths Romanian Jews Romanian emigrants to Israel 20th-century Israeli businesspeople Agudat Yisrael politicians United Torah Judaism leaders People from Caesarea, Israel Members of the 10th Knesset (1981–1984) Members of the 11th Knesset (1984–1988) Members of the 13th Knesset (1992–1996)