United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak commemorated Sukkot at the UK Conservative Party Conference on Wednesday by visiting the Board of Deputies of British Jews’ Sukkah and shaking the Lulav and Etrog.
Sunak, who became prime minister of the UK in 2022, visited the Sukkah with Board of Deputies President Marie van der Zyl and Senior Vice President David Mendoza-Wolfson prior to his remarks at the conference. Sunak was joined by fellow MPs Michael Fabricant, Rebecca Pow, Sara Britcliffe, Chris Clarkson, and Conservative Party President Chris Smallwood, who also visited the Sukkah.
We were delighted to be visited at our #CPC2023 Sukkah this morning by Prime Minister @RishiSunak. Wishing you all a Chag Sameach! pic.twitter.com/v6Cae00nSa
— Board of Deputies of British Jews (@BoardofDeputies) October 3, 2023
"We were delighted to be visited at our [Conservative Party Conference 2023] Sukkah this morning by Prime Minister @RishiSunak,” said the Board of Deputies on X (formerly known as Twitter). “Wishing you all a Chag Sameach!"
Sunak’s ties to the Jewish community, Israel
Sunak has long been a defender of the UK’s Jewish community and of the State of Israel. In June, a Jewish Chronicle article called him a "nice Jewish boy."
"A piece in just this week's Jewish Chronicle suggests, and I quote for those of you that didn't see it, 'Rishi Sunak is a nice Jewish boy.' Well, I can tell you, I was pretty flattered," Sunak said during a speech at an event for Jewish Care.
Sunak also voted against a 2022 UN resolution to provide a judicial opinion about whether Israel’s 55-year occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem constitutes de facto annexation.
“I will fight very hard for the security of people in Israel and to continue the UK’s determined efforts to end the bias against Israel,” Sunak stated in a letter to the CFI on November 30.
“This includes standing up to Iranian hostility and their pursuit of nuclear weapons,” Sunak continued. “Iran’s nuclear escalation is threatening international security and undermining the global non-proliferation system,” said Sunak.
“The UK will continue working with Israel and all our allies to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon,” he said.