Samuel Hayek (born 1953) is a British-Israeli businessman who has been chairman of JNF-UK since August 2008. Hayek was chairman of the

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 Sha ...

youth department.

Biography

Born in

Kfar Saba Kfar Saba ( he, כְּפַר סָבָא), officially Kefar Sava, is a city in the Sharon region, of the Central District of Israel. In 2019 it had a population of 110,456, making it the 16th-largest city in Israel. The population of Kfar Saba i ...

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 ...

, Hayek is a British citizen and splits his time between

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and

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 ...

. He was appointed Director of JNF-UK in August 2008 and has been strongly critical of the

Jewish Leadership Council The Jewish Leadership Council (previously known as the Jewish Community Leadership Council) is an organisation in the United Kingdom, founded in 2003, whose declared aim is to forward the interests of the organised Jewish community in Britain. ...

Controversies

On 2 December 2021, Hayek conducted an interview with ''

The Jerusalem Post ''The Jerusalem Post'' is a broadsheet newspaper based in Jerusalem, founded in 1932 during the British Mandate of Palestine by Gershon Agron as ''The Palestine Post''. In 1950, it changed its name to ''The Jerusalem Post''. In 2004, the paper ...

'' and spoke about what he saw as rising levels of antisemitism in the UK. He claimed that "in 10 years, maybe less, who knows, Jews will not be able to live in the UK." When asked by ''

Jewish News The ''Jewish News'' is a free weekly newspaper, established in 1997, that serves the Jewish communities of Greater London – specifically Middlesex, Hertfordshire and Essex. In 2002, it won the ''Press Gazette'' free newspaper of the year. In F ...

'' to clarify his reasoning, Hayek claimed that "the demographic of British society is changing ue tothe number of immigrants coming to England". He confirmed that the immigrants he was referring to were Muslims, whom he claimed "don't speak English ndcreate their own ghettos, their own education, their own process of thinking." The reaction by leaders of the Board of Deputies,

and

Community Security Trust The Community Security Trust (CST) is a British charity whose purpose is to provide safety, security, and advice to the Jewish community in the UK. It provides advice, training, representation and research. Founding and mission The Community Sec ...

all condemned Hayek's comments, as did the Chief Rabbi

Ephraim Mirvis Rabbi Sir Ephraim Yitzchak Mirvis (born 7 September 1956) is an Orthodox rabbi who serves as the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth. He served as the Chief Rabbi of Ireland between 1985 and 1992. Early life a ...

. Jewish MP Alex Sobel, meanwhile, called for either Hayek to resign as chair of JNF UK or the isolation of the JNF UK from communal organisations while Hayek remained in his position. On 4 January 2022, more than 45 members of the BoD signed a letter calling for Hayek to resign, and stated that they would continue to advise the synagogues do not participate, support, cooperate with JNF-UK as long as he remained chair. On 10 January, another letter signed by 105 Jewish student leaders to suspend all programmes run by the JNF UK and to suspend JNF membership from the Board of Deputies. On 13 January, the Charity Commission for England and Wales opened a regulatory case on JNF UK to assess concerns. On the 21 January Hayek wrote an article in ''

The Jewish Chronicle ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'' stating that he stood by his remarks and was "not against any minority or against the Muslims in the UK or Europe, but against anyone who spreads hatred that harms Jews", and that his previous remarks were "misconstrued". On 23 January, the Board of Deputies voted in favour of censuring the JNF-UK, noting the failure of the latter's trustees to condemn Hayek's remarks.

References

Living people 1953 births Israeli businesspeople Iraqi businesspeople Israeli people of Iraqi-Jewish descent British people of Iraqi-Jewish descent British Jews Iraqi Jews Israeli Jews People from Kfar Saba Israeli people of the Yom Kippur War {{Israel-bio-stub