Yehuda Avidan Appointed Acting CEO of Chief Rabbinate Amid Ongoing Investigation

Yehuda Avidan, currently CEO of the Ministry of Religious Services, has been appointed acting CEO of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel by Minister of Religious Services Yariv Levin. The appointment followed consultations with the Civil Service Commissioner and received approval from the Ministry of Justice and the legal departments of both the Chief Rabbinate and the Ministry of Religious Services. Avidan replaces former CEO Yehuda Cohen, who was compelled to resign amid a separate investigation into alleged irregularities.

The appointment comes despite Avidan being under investigation for alleged fraud, breach of trust, abuse of power, and threats. The probe began after recordings aired on Channel 13 in May 2025, in which Avidan and Tzach Hamdani, head of human resources in the religious councils, were heard allegedly threatening Michel Tapiero, chairman of the religious council in Kiryat Malakhi. The threats aimed to cancel a disciplinary hearing against the city’s kashrut department manager and reinstate him despite discovered irregularities in his work. Avidan has described himself as "our Shas man," referring to the ultra-Orthodox political party.

The Ministry of Religious Services stated that it is customary to appoint the ministry’s CEO as acting CEO of the Chief Rabbinate. Avidan’s appointment was endorsed by the Chief Rabbis of Israel, Rabbi David Yosef and Rabbi Kalman Maier.