Ya'akov Litzman
Ya'akov Litzman, Hebrew: יעקב ליצמן , (born September 2, 1948 in Germany) is an Israeli rabbi and politician of Yahadut HaTorah HaMeuhedet ("United Torah Judaism", shortened UTJ). He is political leader of Agudat Yisrael ("Union of Israel"), one of the two branches of UTJ. He belongs to the Hasidism movement of Haredi Judaism.
Shortly after his birth Litzman migrated to the United States, followed by a migration to Israel when he was a teenager.
In 1999 he was elected to Israel's parliament, the Knesset. In 2015 he was appointed deputy health minister in the Fourth Netanyahu Government. Later that year he became the health minister, so he was included in the government coalition of ruling parties. In November 2017 he again became deputy health minister because he didn't agree that the government allowed repair activities on the national railway infrastructure on the Shabbat.[1] Since May 17, 2020 he has been minister of construction in the Fifth Netanyahu Government.
In early April 2020, Litzman was diagnosed with COVID-19.[2]
References
- ↑ Sabbath Railway Work in Israel May Unravel Netanyahu's Coalition. The New York Times. November 26, 2017.
- ↑ "Health Minister Ya'acov Litzman and wife diagnosed with coronavirus". JPOST. April 2, 2020.