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Israel To Honor Pittsburgh Jewish Leader After Tree Of Life Shooting

JERUSALEM (AP) - Israel has announced it will honor the head of Pittsburgh's Jewish community during next month's Independence Day celebrations, six months after 11 members of the community were killed in a synagogue shooting.

Israel's Culture Ministry said Monday it had selected Jeff Finkelstein, the president of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, to light a torch on behalf of the Jewish Diaspora as part of the government's May 8 Independence Day festivities. It noted Finkelstein's work to lead "the Jewish community's efforts to cope and rebuild" after the deadly Tree of Life attack on Oct. 28.

In a statement, Culture Minister Miri Regev praised Finkelstein embodiment of the "spirit of greatness and social cohesion among our people."

(Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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