(Hai Pa) - Yosef Chakhanover, one of Israel's most prominent economists and administrators and recipient of the Israel Prize for his contribution to the country, passed away peacefully at the age of 91. Chakhanover, the brother of Nobel laureate Aharon Chakhanover, left a deep mark in public and private service , and contributed a lot to the State of Israel over decades of work in various fields.
Chahanover was born in Haifa to a religious family, the son of Yitzhak, a lawyer, and Bluma, a clerk and English teacher, who immigrated from Poland in the early 30s. He grew up in the Hadar Carmel neighborhood and was educated on the values of education and public service. After completing his studies at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem in the fields of education, law and business administration, he gained extensive academic and theoretical experience that served him throughout his life.
During his first years in the public service, Chechenover served as the legal advisor in the Ministry of Agriculture and then in the Ministry of Defense, where he was close to Minister Moshe Dayan. Among his most prominent positions, he served as Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs during Dayan's tenure as Foreign Minister (1978-1980) and even served as head of the Ministry of Defense delegation in Canada and the United States, a position in which he was appreciated by the US government upon receiving the Distinguished Public Service Award.
Later in his career, Chakhanover was appointed to head the Council for the War on Drugs, a member of the Council for Commemorating Presidents and Prime Ministers, and chairman of the committee to investigate the failed assassination attempt of Khaled Mashal in Jordan. In 2010 he was appointed as Israel's representative in the UN commission to investigate the events of the Turkish flotilla ("Palmer Report"). In this context, Chechenover led the negotiations between Israel and Turkey in 2016 to regulate diplomatic relations between the countries.
In addition to public service, Chechenover served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Discount Bank after the bank stock crisis and as Chairman of the Board of Directors of El Al. For years he also served as the representative of Edgar Bronfman's "Etgar" investment fund in Israel, and was a member of the boards of directors of key entities in the Israeli economy.
Throughout his life, Chechenover received many honors, including the Distinguished Service Medal from the US Department of Defense and the French Legion of Honor in the rank of officer and commandeur. In 2021 he was awarded the Israel Prize for his special contribution to society and the country.
Chechenover left behind three children, and a life story of deep commitment to the State of Israel and Israeli society.
Details on the date of the funeral and the oath will be published later.
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