Eilat Mayor Mourns Former Chief Rabbi Moshe Mordechai Hedaya, Who Died at 91

Eilat Mayor Eli Lankri paid tribute on Saturday evening to Rabbi Moshe Mordechai Hedaya, the city's former Sephardi chief rabbi, who died at 91. Lankri described Hedaya as Eilat's spiritual father and a unifying figure for religious and secular residents, saying he had been among the rabbi's early students. Hedaya served as the city's chief rabbi for roughly seven decades, until 2024. The mayor recalled presenting him with Eilat's lifetime achievement award, which he received in March 2025; his son, Rabbi Yair Hedaya, was selected as city rabbi in May 2026.