Ioannina Mayor Moisis Elisaf, Greece’s first elected Jewish mayor, passed away on Friday afternoon at 68-years-old after a battle with cancer, the Athens News Agency reported. A professor of medicine by trade, Elisaf was elected mayor of Ioannina in the second round of local elections in 2019. Elisaf, who ran as an independent, won by a close vote, garnering 50.33 percent of the vote compared to his opponent’s 49.67 percent. Ioannina has a total population of nearly 57,000. Elisaf was a professor of Internal Medicine at the University of Ioannina, Medical School and director of the 2nd Department of Internal Medicine. He was also head of the Lipids, Atherosclerosis, Obesity and Diabetes Department of the University Hospital of Ioannina. Related articles: Thessaloniki breaks ground on new Holocaust museum Young Greek Jewish filmmaker & untold stories about WWII Greece Greece commemorates 80th anniversary of Auschwitz deportations Greek Jews call for creation of Thessaloniki Holocaust monument He had been the head of the small local Jewish community now numbering about 50 for two decades. He previously served as the head of the Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece. Condolences came from Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, President of the Greek Parliament Constantine Tassoulas, government ministers, deputies, regional officials and Germany’s ambassador to Athens Ernst Reichel, according to the report. Elisaf will be buried on Sunday at the Holy Synagogue of Ioannina.
