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Minister for Senior Citizens, Uri Orbach died yesterday in a Jerusalem hospital following a battle against a blood condition. He was buried yesterday afternoon and warmly eulogised by leaders from across the political spectrum.

Born in Petach Tikvah to a religious family in 1960, Orbach studied in a number of religious institutions before joining the army. He then worked as a teacher before embarking on a distinguished career as a journalist and media commentator. Over the years he was a columnist for several newspapers including Maariv and Yediot Ahronot and also presented the popular Last Word programme on Army Radio for some years. Throughout his media career, Orbach was a stringent and eloquent opponent of the Oslo Accords and one of the most recognisable religious figures in Israeli journalism. Orbach, a father of four himself, was also a prolific children’s author.

In 2008, Orbach left journalism to join the Jewish Home party and secured third slot on the party’s Knesset candidates list in 2009. He ensured that the party widened its support base through primaries and was very influential in Economy Minister Naftali Bennett’s rise to the party leadership. Renowned as a dedicated and affable Knesset member, Orbach was appointed Minister for Senior Citizens in 2013.

Both President Reuven Rivlin and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu eulogized Orbach at his funeral yesterday. Rivlin, a personal friend called Orbach “Uri the good and the modest, the fair, the honourable.” Netanyahu commented, “Despite his exceptional wit he did not have an ounce of evil in him. I never heard of one person who met him and did not love him.” Bennett meanwhile said “My big brother has left me.” Warm tributes were also paid by Zionist Camp leaders Isaac Herzog and Tzipi Livni, who said Orbach brought “wit and humour to the Knesset,” while Meretz Chairwoman Zahava Gal-On commented, “He knew how to bridge between the different worlds of Israeli society.”