Ya'akov Edri ( he, יעקב אדרי, also spelt Edery or Edrey, born 25 November 1950) is an Israeli politician, serving as the mayor of

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 ...

. He served as a member of the Knesset for

Likud Likud ( he, הַלִּיכּוּד, HaLikud, The Consolidation), officially known as Likud – National Liberal Movement, is a major centre-right to right-wing political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin and Ariel Shar ...

and

Kadima Kadima ( he, קדימה, lit=''Forward'') was a centrist and liberal political party in Israel. It was established on 24 November 2005 by moderates from Likud largely following the implementation of Ariel Sharon's unilateral disengagement p ...

between 2003 and 2013, as well as holding the posts of Minister of Immigrant Absorption, Minister of Negev and Galilee Development, Minister of Health and a

Minister without Portfolio A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister who does not head a particular ministry. The sinecure is particularly common in countries ruled by coalition governments and a cabinet ...

Biography

Born in

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria ...

, Edri emigrated to Israel in 1959. He attended the

University of Haifa The University of Haifa ( he, אוניברסיטת חיפה Arabic: جامعة حيفا) is a university located on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel. Founded in 1963, the University of Haifa received full academic accreditation in 1972, becoming I ...

, where he gained a BA in political science and an MA in public administration. Between 1989 and 2003, he served as mayor of

, where he currently resides. In 2003, he was elected to the Knesset on the Likud list. On 10 March 2003, he was appointed Deputy Minister of Internal Security. In late November 2005, he resigned from

and joined

. On 18 January 2006 he was appointed Minister of Health and the Minister for the Development of the

Negev The Negev or Negeb (; he, הַנֶּגֶב, hanNegév; ar, ٱلنَّقَب, an-Naqab) is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The region's largest city and administrative capital is Beersheba (pop. ), in the north. At its southe ...

and the

Galilee Galilee (; he, הַגָּלִיל, hagGālīl; ar, الجليل, al-jalīl) is a region located in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. Galilee traditionally refers to the mountainous part, divided into Upper Galilee (, ; , ) and Lower Gali ...

. Edri retained his seat in the

2006 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2006. * Elections in 2006 * Electoral calendar 2006 * 2006 Acehnese regional election * 2006 American Samoan legislative election * 2006 Bahraini parliamentary election * 2006 Costa Rican presidenti ...

, and on 27 July was named Minister without Portfolio responsible for Jerusalem Affairs. As part of a cabinet reshuffle in July 2007 he became both Minister of Immigrant Absorption and Minister of Negev and Galilee Development. He lost the former portfolio on 14 July 2008 when Eli Aflalo was appointed to the post. On 25 February 2007 he was appointed to be responsible for Israel's sixtieth anniversary celebrations. On the same day, he was questioned under caution on suspicion of having tried to receive personal benefits in return for promoting a police commander, Ya'akov Zigdon, whilst he was Deputy Minister of Internal Security. He denied the charges. He retained his seat in the 2009 elections after being placed thirteenth on the Kadima list. On 5 December 2012, in the days leading up to the

2013 elections The following elections were occurred in the year 2013. Asia * 2013 Armenian local elections 26 May, 17 November, and 8 December 2013 * 2013 Armenian presidential election 18 February 2013 * 2013 Bangladeshi presidential election 22 April 2013 ...

, with polls showing Kadima either barely getting into the Knesset or not even passing the threshold, Edri announced he would not be contesting the elections. He then returned to local politics and resumed his post as mayor of Or Akiva.

References

External links

*
Yaakov Edri
Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs {{DEFAULTSORT:Edri, Yaakov 1950 births Living people Jewish Israeli politicians Kadima politicians Likud politicians Mayors of places in Israel Members of the 16th Knesset (2003–2006) Members of the 17th Knesset (2006–2009) Members of the 18th Knesset (2009–2013) Ministers of Health of Israel Moroccan emigrants to Israel 20th-century Moroccan Jews People from Or Akiva University of Haifa alumni