David Susskind, who attempted to further Israeli-Palestinian dialogue in the past, has been elected chairman of the umbrella organization of Belgian Jews.
Susskind, 68, succeeds Lazard Perez.
Susskind was elected during a recent General Assembly of the Coordinating Committee of Belgian Jewish Organizations. Founded in 1970, the Coordinating Committee is a member of the European Jewish Congress and the World Jewish Congress.
Belgium has a population of about 30,000 Jews.
Susskind, who operates an industrial diamond business, is founder and honorary president of Brussels’ Jewish Lay Community Center, a leftist association that has been criticized in the past by other members of the community for being too pro-Palestinian.
In 1988, Susskind and his wife, Simone, organized a meeting here called “Give Peace a Chance,” where Jews, Israelis and Palestinians presented their views about how to establish peace in the Middle East.
During the recent visit here by Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman Yasser Arafat, the Susskinds were warmly welcomed at a reception held at the residence of Morocco’s ambassador to Belgium.
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