He served as mayor of Jerusalem for 5 terms: Who is Theodor Kollek?

(1911 - 2007) Theodor "Teddy" Kollek is an Israeli politician who served as Mayor of Jerusalem from 1965 to 1993 and founder of the Jerusalem Foundation. Kollek is the only politician who has served as mayor of Jerusalem for 5 terms. He suffered his only electoral defeat in his political life at the age of 82 in 1993 against future Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in the local elections.

Israeli experts state that during Teddy Kollek's tenure, Jerusalem was transformed into a modern city. Kollek is also considered by some experts as "the greatest founder of Jerusalem since Herod".

Theodor (Teddy) Kollek was born in the place known as Kolle Tivadar in Nagyvazsony, 120 km from the Hungarian capital, Budapest. His family moved to Vienna in 1918. Growing up in the Austrian capital, Kolek adopted the Zionist beliefs of his father Alfred.

In 1935, three years before the Nazis seized power in Austria, the Kollek family emigrated to British-controlled Palestine. Kollek was one of the founders of Kibbutz Ein Gev on the shore of Lake Kinneret in 1937. He married Tamar Schwarz the same year and they had two children afterward.

JERUSALEM MUNICIPALITY

In 1965, Teddy Kollek won the election for Mayor of Jerusalem, passing Mordechai Ish-Shalom. When Kollek was asked how his mayorship in Jerusalem has retained this long-standing motivation, he answers as follows:

“When the city was united in 1967, I saw it as a historic event. Then I looked at this city. Taking care of him and taking care of him better than anyone else is a complete life purpose. I think Jerusalem is one of the most important elements of Jewish history. A body cannot live without a heart but without an arm or a leg. This is his heart and soul.”

During his tenure, Jerusalem became a modern city, especially after its reunification in 1967.

Relationship with the Arab community

In the Six-Day War of 1967, East of Jerusalem, which had been under Jordanian control since 1948, was captured by Israel. As Mayor of a newly reunified Jerusalem, Kollek's approach to Arab residents was pragmatic. A few hours after the transfer of authority, he distributed milk to Arab children. Some Israelis viewed him as pro-Arab. Kollek advocated religious tolerance and made efforts to reach the Arab community during his tenure. While insisting that Jerusalem should never be partitioned again and remain under Israeli rule, he believed that concessions had to be made to reach a final solution.

RETIREMENT AND DEATH

After leaving the mayorship, Kollek continued to work actively and contribute to some studies in his retirement.

Kollek died on January 2, 2007. He was buried in the Mount Herzl National Cemetery in Jerusalem.