Jerusalem -- The spiritual leader of the second-largest Hasidic community in Israel, Rabbi Moshe Yehoshua Hager, has died. He was 95.
Hager died Tuesday and was buried Wednesday in the Tel Aviv suburb of Bnei Brak. The funeral drew tens of thousands of mourners from his community and other Hasidic groups.
The ultra-Orthodox rabbi presided for 40 years over the Vishnitz, the second-largest Hasidic dynasty in Israel. He also served as president of the Council of Torah Sages, the decision-making body of Agudath Yisrael, a political arm of ultra-Orthodox Jews.
The Vishnitz, founded in the mid-19th century, is named for a village in present-day Ukraine. Hager was its fifth leader.
