Ya'akov Asher (, ; born 2 July 1965) is an Israeli

Haredi Haredi Judaism (, ) is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that is characterized by its strict interpretation of religious sources and its accepted (Jewish law) and traditions, in opposition to more accommodating values and practices. Its members are ...

rabbi and politician who currently serves as a member of the Knesset for the

United Torah Judaism United Torah Judaism (, ''Yahadut HaTora'') is a Haredi, religious conservative political alliance in Israel. The alliance, consisting of Agudat Yisrael and Degel HaTorah, was first formed in 1992, in order to maximize Ashkenazi Haredi repr ...

alliance. A member of the

Degel HaTorah Degel HaTorah () 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 was founded in 1988, as a splinter from Agudat Isr ...

party, he previously served as a member of the Knesset between 2013 and 2015, and was also the thirteenth mayor of

Bnei Brak Bnei Brak ( ) or Bene Beraq, is a city located on the central Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean Israeli coastal plain, coastal plain in Israel, just east of Tel Aviv. A center of Haredi Judaism, Bnei Brak covers an area of 709 hectares (1,752 acre ...

, having taken office in 2008.

Biography

Asher was born and raised in

Ramat Gan Ramat Gan (, ) is a city in the Tel Aviv District of Israel, located east of the municipality of Tel Aviv, and is part of the Gush Dan, Gush Dan metropolitan area. It is home to a Diamond Exchange District (one of the world's major diamond exch ...

to Aharon and Tova Asher. He studied at the Mishkan Yaakov Yeshiva in

Haifa Haifa ( ; , ; ) is the List of cities in Israel, third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropolitan area i ...

, the Rabbi Amiel Yeshiva in Tel Aviv, and the

Grodno Yeshiva Yeshiva Shaar HaTorah – Grodna, often referred to as the Grodna Yeshiva or simply as Grodna, was an Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Jewish yeshiva in the Belarusian city of Grodno, then under Russian Empire, Russian rule. Founded during World W ...

Ashdod Ashdod (, ; , , or ; Philistine language, Philistine: , romanized: *''ʾašdūd'') is the List of Israeli cities, sixth-largest city in Israel. Located in the country's Southern District (Israel), Southern District, it lies on the Mediterranean ...

. He later continued his studies at the Beit Yehuda

Kollel A kollel (also kolel) (, , , , a "gathering" or "collection" f scholars is an institute for full-time, advanced Torah study, study of the Talmud and rabbinic literature. Like a yeshiva, a kollel features Shiur (Torah), shiurim (lectures) and ...

. Asher served for several months in the IDF under the Shlav B program.

Political career

Local government activities

In 1990, Asher began working at the

municipality, initially assisting Deputy Mayor Eliyahu Suissa. In 1992, he became the manager of Mayor Yerachmiel Boyar's office. Between 1996 and 1998, he assisted the municipality's CEO and later managed the Education Department. Ahead of the first elections in

El'ad El'ad () is a city in the Central District of Israel. In the 1990s, it was built for a Haredi population and to a lesser extent, it was also built for a Religious Zionist Jewish population. Located about east of Tel Aviv on Route 444 between R ...

in September 2000, Asher relocated to the city and ran as the leader of the "Chen Together" list affiliated with

. He competed against the appointed council head Tzuriel Krispel representing

Shas Shas () is a Haredi Judaism, Haredi religious List of political parties in Israel, political party in Israel. Founded in 1984 by Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, a former Israeli Sephardic Jews, Sephardi chief rabbi, who remained its spiritual leader until ...

. Asher received 914 votes, losing to Krispel, who garnered 974 votes. He joined the council and served as Deputy Council Head. Krispel attempted to remove him from the council, claiming Asher did not reside in Elad and worked for Bnei Brak Municipality, but the move was blocked by a court ruling. Asher worked to allocate buildings for institutions affiliated with United Torah Judaism and took legal action on several occasions to achieve this. In 2003, Asher returned to the Bnei Brak municipality and was elected to the council as the first representative of Degel HaTorah on its joint list with

Agudat Yisrael Agudat Yisrael (; Ashkenazi Hebrew: ''Agudas Yisroel'') is a Haredi Judaism, Haredi Jewish political party in Israel. It began as a political party representing Haredi Judaism, Haredi Jews in Poland, originating in the Agudath Israel movement ...

, "The Central Torah List." He served as Deputy Mayor Yeshayahu Frankenthal and was in charge of the Engineering Department. Ahead of the 2008 Bnei Brak municipal elections, Asher was selected as Degel HaTorah's candidate for mayor, as part of a rotation agreement between Degel HaTorah and Agudat Yisrael. Asher was declared mayor without elections being held, as he was the candidate from the sole list running, "The Central Torah List," which included representatives from United Torah Judaism,

, and

The Jewish Home The Jewish Home () was an Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Jewish, Religious Zionism, religious Zionist and Far-right politics in Israel, far-right political party in Israel. It was originally formed by a merger of the National Religious Party, Mole ...

National-level activities

Ahead of the elections for the 19th Knesset, Asher was placed seventh on the

list as the third representative of Degel HaTorah and was elected to the Knesset. Ahead of the elections for the 20th Knesset, he was again placed seventh on the list but did not enter the Knesset, as United Torah Judaism received only six seats. He was subsequently appointed as the

Secretary General Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, Power (social and political), power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the org ...

of Degel HaTorah. On May 24, 2016, following the resignation of Deputy Education Minister

Meir Porush Meir Porush (; born 11 June 1955) is an Israeli politician who has served as a member of the Knesset for the Haredi Agudat Yisrael faction of United Torah Judaism in several spells since 1996. He served as the Deputy Minister of Education. Biog ...

under the " Small Norwegian Law" (Section 42G of the Basic Law: The Knesset), Asher entered the Knesset in his place. Ahead of the elections for the 21st Knesset, Asher was placed sixth on the United Torah Judaism list. The list won eight seats in the elections, and he entered the Knesset, serving as the chair of the United Torah Judaism faction. Since 2016, Yaakov Asher has been a member of the public council of NATAL, an organization providing psychological support for trauma victims of national conflicts. Ahead of the elections for the 24th Knesset, he was placed fifth on the list and entered the Knesset. On February 28, 2022, Asher was appointed as Deputy Speaker of the Knesset. In 2023 Asher and Moshe Gafni submitted a bill that would have banned

Proselytizing Proselytism () is the policy of attempting to convert people's religious or political beliefs. Carrying out attempts to instill beliefs can be called proselytization. Proselytism is illegal in some countries. Some draw distinctions between Chris ...

Christianity in Israel Christianity (; ; ) is the third largest religion in Israel, after Judaism and Islam. At the end of 2022, Christians made up 1.9% of the Israeli population, numbering approximately 185,000. 75.8% of the Christians in Israel are Arab Christians. ...

. He currently serves in the 25th Knesset as the chair of the Interior and Environment Committee.

Personal life

Asher's brothers are Rabbi Pinchas Asher and Rabbi Avraham Asher (who passed away in 2019). Rabbi Yaakov Asher is married to Miriam-Miri Asher, and they have seven children. He resides in

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Asher, Yaakov 1965 births Living people Degel HaTorah politicians Haredi rabbis in Israel Israeli Ashkenazi Jews Mayors of places in Israel Members of the 19th Knesset (2013–2015) Members of the 20th Knesset (2015–2019) Members of the 21st Knesset (2019) Members of the 22nd Knesset (2019–2020) Members of the 23rd Knesset (2020–2021) Members of the 24th Knesset (2021–2022) Members of the 25th Knesset (2022–) People from Ramat Gan Rabbinic members of the Knesset Rabbis in Bnei Brak United Torah Judaism politicians Yiddish-speaking people