Elazar Abuhatzeira also known as Baba Elazar (9 August 1948 – 28 July 2011) was an

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...

Sefardi Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), pt, Judeus sefa ...

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

and kabbalist in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

. He was born in

Rissani Rissani is a town in Errachidia Province in eastern Morocco, located near Erfoud. It is the closest town of significant size to the Erg Chebbi, the largest sand desert in Morocco. Its population in 2004 was 20,469. The mausoleum of Moulay Ali ...

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 to ...

to Rabbi Meir and Simcha Abuhatzeira, was the grandson of the Baba Sali, Rabbi Yisrael Abuhatzeira, and the brother of Rabbi David Chai Abuhatzeira of

Nahariya Nahariya ( he, נַהֲרִיָּה, ar, نهاريا) is the northernmost coastal city in Israel. In it had a population of . Etymology Nahariya takes its name from the stream of Ga'aton (river is ''nahar'' in Hebrew), which bisects it. Hist ...

. He moved to Israel in 1966 and studied at the Porat Yosef Yeshiva. He later moved to

Beersheba Beersheba or Beer Sheva, officially Be'er-Sheva ( he, בְּאֵר שֶׁבַע, ''Bəʾēr Ševaʿ'', ; ar, بئر السبع, Biʾr as-Sabʿ, Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven), is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. ...

where he ran a

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 s ...

. Besides from his reputation as a leading kabbalist, Abuhatzeira was known for his work and influence with business and political leaders and had a following as a spiritual leader. In 2011 he had estimated assets of $80 million. Abuhatzeira was known for wearing a cloak whose long hood covered most of his face, reportedly to shield him from glancing at immodestly dressed women. He had a tunnel dug between his home and his yeshiva where he received people. Abuhatzeira was married to Dvora and had seven children.

Fraud and tax evasion claims

A 1997 investigation by Yossi Bar-Moha for the ''

Haaretz ''Haaretz'' ( , originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel, and is now published in both Hebrew and English in the Berliner f ...

'' newspaper linked several incidents of corruption to Abuhatzeira, claiming that he tried to impress and persuaded people to pay him in exchange for a blessing and threatened curses. The report also claimed that Abuhatzeira's bank account contained NIS 250 million in gifts and contributions, that he had sold land designated for a girls school and was evading municipal property taxes. A police investigation was launched and in 2003 Abuhatzeira was ordered to pay NIS 100 million to the tax authority on money he received from followers. Following an appeal, a settlement was reached whereby he paid back NIS 20 million to charitable organizations. By 2004 Bar-Moha claimed that Abuhatzeira's income had grown to NIS 500 million ($141m, 2004), and he filed a joint petition with the Progressive Judaism Movement to the Israeli Supreme Court demanding the tax settlement to be cancelled, but the petition was dismissed. In 2009 a man was indicted for threatening to kill Abuhatzeira, claiming that the rabbi made him a medical promise that had not come trueEttinger, Yair
Murder worries advice-giving rabbis
Haaretz, 4 August 2011 and in 2010, Abuhatzeira was accused by Jews in New York of charging hundreds of thousands of dollars in exchange promised miracles that never came to fruition. The prosecutor in Brooklyn subsequently opened an investigation and Abuhatzeira stopped traveling to the United States as a result. Bar-Moha claimed "Elazar Abuhatzeira is a charlatan, conman and impostor who takes advantage of people's innocence, exploits them and brings to the verge of poverty". His disciples defended him saying that Abuhatzeira is humble and modest and would never do such a thingNatasha Mozgovaya (18 February 2010)
U.S. prosecutors probing Israeli rabbi over fraud
''Haaretz'' and insisted he used his wealth to support the poor.

Murder

Abuhatzeira was murdered on 28 July 2011 by Asher Dahan of El'ad who stabbed him in the upper body during a private audience. The 42-year-old attacker was said to have been unhappy with marital advice the rabbi had given him. Attempts were made at the scene to resuscitate him, but he was pronounced dead on arrival at the Soroka Medical Center. The funeral was held the next day in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

and was attended by tens of thousands of people, including Israel's chief rabbis, Haredi ministers and

Knesset The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...

members. Eulogies were delivered at the Porat Yosef Yeshiva and in the

Geula Geula ( he, גאולה lit. ''Redemption'') is a neighborhood in the center of Jerusalem, populated mainly by Haredi Jews. Geula is bordered by Zikhron Moshe and Mekor Baruch on the west, the Bukharim neighborhood on the north, Mea Shearim on th ...

neighborhood. MK

Meshulam Nahari Rabbi Meshulam Nahari ( he, מְשׁוּלָּם נָהָרִי, born 7 May 1951) is an Israeli politician. He served as a member of the Knesset for Shas in two spells between 1999 and 2021. Biography Meshullam Nahari was born in Jerusalem to ...

said "who would have thought that... a rabbi could be murdered in Israel?" He is buried on the Mount of Olives. Asher Dahan was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder.Rabbi Abuhatzeira's Murderer Gets Life Sentence
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abuhatzeira, Elazar 1948 births 2011 deaths

Elazar Eleazar (; ) or Elʽazar was a priest in the Hebrew Bible, the second High Priest, succeeding his father Aaron after he died. He was a nephew of Moses. Biblical narrative Eleazar played a number of roles during the course of the Exodus, from cr ...

Assassinated rabbis Moroccan emigrants to Israel Deaths by stabbing in Israel Sephardic Haredi rabbis in Israel Israeli murder victims People murdered in Israel People from Rissani Burials at the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives Rabbis in Beersheba