The Rav of Be’er Sheva, HaGaon HaRav Yehudah Deri, z’tl, was niftar at Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem on Tuesday afternoon at the age of 66.

HaRav Deri, z’tl, began feeling unwell about two weeks ago due to an infection in his leg that developed complications. He was hospitalized in the ICU in very serious condition and attached to an ECMO machine. Earlier this week, the doctors disconnected him from the machine and sadly, his condition rapidly deteriorated.

HaRav Deri, z’tl, the oldest brother of Shas leader Aryeh Deri, served as the much-beloved Rav of Be’er Sheva for 30 years, the Raavad of the Beis Din in the city, and was a member of the Rabbanut for decades. Before becoming the Rav of Be’er Sheva, he served as the Rav of the Ramot neighborhood of Jerusalem.

He was known as a huge talmid chacham who delivered countless shiurim, traveling throughout Israel to do so – he never refused a shiur.

The Rav authored dozens of sefarim, with the main ones being Imrei Yehudah and Avnei Ezer. He was very close to HaGaon HaRav Ovadia Yosef, z’tl, and his sons later married HaRav Ovadia’s granddaughters, the daughters of HaGaon HaRav Yitzchak Yosef and HaGaon HaRav Avraham Yosef.

HaRav Deri, z’tl, was born in Morocco and began his Torah study there at the age of 5 in Otzer HaTorah, a school that offered Torah and secular studies. He made aliyah with his family at the age of 10, living first in Holon and then in Bat Yam.

As a bochur, he was sent to study at a state-religious school in Rishon L’Tzion and from there was sent, together with his brother Aryeh, to a Chareidi school in Hadera. After three years, he and dozens of other talmidim were sent to Yeshivas Porat Yosef in Jerusalem, where he formed a close relationship with the Rosh Yeshivah, Chacham HaRav Ben-Tzion Abba Shaul, z’tl.

He later moved to Yeshivas Ateres Yisrael and became the talmid muvhak of HaGaon HaRav Baruch Mordechai Ezrachi, z’tl, to whom he remained close with until the Rosh Yeshiva’s petirah.

Yehi Zichro Baruch.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)