Moshe Kantor was reelected as President of the European Jewish Congress (EJC) by the organisation’s General Assembly on Tuesday.
He ran unopposed. Marie van der Zyl, president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, was reelected as Chair of the Council.
“In am honored and humbled by the support shown in my leadership by Jewish leaders and communities across the continent,” Kantor declared. “European Jewry is a thriving force in the global Jewish world, and we remain at the forefront of fighting antisemitism, defending Jewish tradition and reinvigorating Jewish communities and institutions.”
“These have been very challenging times for European Jews”, Kantor added. “I witness in my conversations with Jewish leaders, heads of state and decision-makers around the continent that despite the challenges of Covid-19 and rising antisemitism, European Jews are resolute and determined to continue working together to overcome these challenges and strengthen Jewish life in Europe.”
The EJC said that under Kantor’s leadership, the organization has acted to provide support for Jewish communities and institutions, whether schools, community centers or other organizations vital to European Jewry, faced with the hard challenge of Covid-19.
During the virtual General Assembly, leaders from 42 European Jewish communities pledged new action to promote the implementation of the IHRA definition of antisemitism on the national level.
Additionally, European Jewish leaders were briefed on the recent historic Abraham Accords between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and the United States by Emmanuel Nachshon, Ambassador of Israel to Belgium and Luxembourg, and Nancy Khedouri, senior Jewish member of the National Assembly of Bahrain.
Aged 67, Moshe Kantor is a Jewish leader, philanthropist and businessman. He received his PhD in Sciences with a specialization in Spacecraft Automatic Control Systems.
He was first elected President of the European Jewish Congress in 2007. He remains at the forefront of key issues relating to Jews on the European continent. He is also President of the International Luxembourg Forum on Preventing Nuclear Catastrophe and Founder and President of the European Council on Tolerance and Reconciliation, a non-governmental organization composed of former heads of European states, Nobel Peace Prize laureates and other world renowned individuals famous for their achievements in promoting tolerance.
‘’In his leading role during one of the most turbulent periods in modern Jewish history, he has worked to preserve Jewish life in the Diaspora, to protect European Jewry and strengthen its position on the global Jewish map,’’ the EJC said.
In January 2019, Kantor organized the Fifth World Holocaust Forum, at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem. The event, held against the background of rising antisemitism in the world and marking the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp, was attended by some 50 heads of state and leaders from around the world, including French President Emmanuel Macron, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Britain’s Prince Charles.