Israel Rokach, Honorary CBE ( he, ישראל רוקח; December 31, 1896 – September 13, 1959) was an Israeli politician,

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 ...

member, and fourth mayor of

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 ...

from November 15, 1936 until April 13, 1953.

Biography

Israel Rokach was born in 1896 in

Neve Tzedek Neve Tzedek ( he, נְוֵה צֶדֶק, נווה צדק, ''lit.'' Abode of Justice) is a neighborhood located in southwestern Tel Aviv, Israel. It was the first Judaism, Jewish neighborhood to be built outside the old city of the ancient port of ...

, then part of

Jaffa Jaffa, in Hebrew Yafo ( he, יָפוֹ, ) and in Arabic Yafa ( ar, يَافَا) and also called Japho or Joppa, the southern and oldest part of Tel Aviv-Yafo, is an ancient port city in Israel. Jaffa is known for its association with the b ...

. His mother was Rachel Rokach (born in 1863). His father, Shimon Rokach (born in 1863), a journalist, was one of the founders of the neighborhood. His grandfather, Israel Beck, revived the Hebrew printing industry in

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

. Rokach attended a

cheder A ''cheder'' ( he, חדר, lit. "room"; Yiddish pronunciation ''kheyder'') is a traditional primary school teaching the basics of Judaism and the Hebrew language. History ''Cheders'' were widely found in Europe before the end of the 18th ...

and then an

Alliance Israélite Universelle The Alliance Israélite Universelle (AIU; he, כל ישראל חברים; ) is a Paris-based international Jewish organization founded in 1860 with the purpose of safeguarding human rights for Jews around the world. It promotes the ideals of Jew ...

school. He traveled to

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, where he continued his education at a high school in

Lausanne , neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR-74), ...

and then studied

electrical engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems which use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

at the

Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...

polytechnic. In 1920, Israel Rokach moved to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, where he worked as an electrical engineer. In 1922, he returned to Jaffa, where he opened a store for electrical supplies. In 1933, Rokach married Esther Epstein. Rokach died in 1959 and was buried in Trumpeldor Cemetery in Tel Aviv.

Political career

Rokach's first public position was council member in Jaffa, representing the Jewish neighborhoods of Neve Tzedek,

Neve Shalom Neve Shalom ( he, נְוֵה שָׁלוֹם, ''lit.'' Oasis of Peace), also known as Wāħat as-Salām ( ar, واحة السلام) is a cooperative village in Israel, jointly founded by Israeli Jews and Arabs in an attempt to show that the two p ...

and Ohel Moshe. In 1922, he was elected to the city council of Tel Aviv, representing the United Centrist List party. In 1929 he was appointed deputy mayor to

Meir Dizengoff Meir Dizengoff ( he, מֵאִיר דִּיזֶנְגּוֹף, russian: Меер Янкелевич Дизенгоф ''Meer Yankelevich Dizengof'', 25 February 1861 – 23 September 1936) was a Zionist leader and politician and the founder and fi ...

. Following Dizengoff's death in 1936, the city council held an emergency election for the office of Mayor. Rokach represented the right-wing parties, but lost to Moshe Chelouche of the workers' parties. Nevertheless, the British High Commissioner forced Rokach's appointment to the mayoral post. Despite public uproar about British intervention in the Jewish democratic process, Rokach went on to serve as mayor of Tel Aviv until 1953. For his great success, he was awarded the title of Officer of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

. During his tenure, Tel Aviv expanded rapidly and its population tripled. Jaffa, Rokach's birthplace, was merged into the city in 1949, giving it a significant population boost, despite Rokach's initial opposition to the merger. The 1936-39 Arab revolt,

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and the

1948 Arab-Israeli War Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect. ** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...

all occurred during his tenure, including

Operation Hametz Operation Hametz ( he, מבצע חמץ, ''Mivtza Hametz'') was a Jewish operation towards the end of the British Mandate of Palestine, as part of the 1948 Palestine war. It was launched at the end of April 1948 with the objective of capturing vi ...

- the capture of Jaffa from Arab hands. During this period, Tel Aviv was bombed from the air multiple times, the first being by the

Italian Air Force , colours = , colours_label = , march = (Ordinance March of the Air Force) by Alberto Di Miniello , mascot = , anniversaries = 28 March ...

in 1940. After this, underground shelters and loudspeaker systems were built, which also served the population in 1949, when Egyptian Spitfires made strafing runs on the city. In August of 1947, Rokach and other municipal leaders were imprisoned in

Latrun Latrun ( he, לטרון, ''Latrun''; ar, اللطرون, ''al-Latrun'') is a strategic hilltop in the Latrun salient in the Ayalon Valley, and a depopulated Palestinian village. It overlooks the road between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, 25 kilometers ...

for aiding Jewish underground organizations. He was released in September 1947. In 1952, Israel Rokach delivered a farewell speech and ceased his municipal duties in Tel Aviv. However, he officially continued as mayor until

Chaim Levanon Chaim Levanon (1899–1986; he, חיים לבנון) was a Polish-born Israeli politician and mayor of Tel Aviv between 13 April 1953 and 1959. Personal life Levanon was born in Kraków, Poland, in 1899 as Chaim Yosef Levinstein. After graduatin ...

was elected to replace him on April 13, 1953. Rokach served as head of the

Maccabi World Union Maccabi World Union is an international Jewish sports organisation spanning five continents (Africa, North America, South America, Australia, Europe) and more than 50 countries, with some 400,000 members. The Maccabi World Union organises the Mac ...

. He was a member of the

from its first inception until the

third Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * Second#Sexagesimal divisions of calendar time and day, 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (d ...

as a member of the

General Zionists The General Zionists ( he, הַצִיּוֹנִים הַכְּלָלִיים, translit. ''HaTzionim HaKlaliym'') were a centrist Zionist movement and a political party in Israel. The General Zionists supported the leadership of Chaim Weizmann an ...

. In the first and second Knessets, he was also a member of the Finance Committee. In the third Knesset, he also held the position of deputy

speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

. In the fourth and fifth governments, between 1952 and 1955, Israel Rokach served as the

Interior Minister of Israel The Ministry of Interior ( he, משרד הפנים, ''Misrad HaPnim''; ar, وزارة الداخلية) in the State of Israel is one of the Cabinet of Israel, government offices that is responsible for Local government#Israel, local government ...

. In 2008, Israel honored him on a postage stamp.

Awards and recognition

Honorary OBE (1938)

Honorary CBE (1945)
The , an Israeli architecture award, is named after him.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rokach, Israel 1890s births 1959 deaths Deputy Speakers of the Knesset Jews in Ottoman Palestine Jews in Mandatory Palestine General Zionists leaders Deputy Mayors of Tel Aviv-Yafo Mayors of Tel Aviv-Yafo Ministers of Internal Affairs of Israel People from Jaffa Members of the 1st Knesset (1949–1951) Members of the 2nd Knesset (1951–1955) Members of the 3rd Knesset (1955–1959) Honorary Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Burials at Trumpeldor Cemetery