The President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Josef Schuster, is made an honorary citizen of his hometown of Würzburg on June 26. Mayor Christian Schuchardt (CDU) will give Schuster the city’s highest award at a ceremony for invited guests, as the city announced on Thursday evening. According to media reports, the city council made the decision in a non-public meeting. For security reasons, the location of the ceremony will not be communicated in advance.
Schuster was born in Haifa, Israel, in 1954 after his parents, who came from Lower Franconia, fled from the National Socialists. In 1956 the family moved back to Germany and settled in Würzburg. Schuster worked as an internist with his own practice in his hometown for a long time.
He has been chairman of the Jewish community in Würzburg since 1998, president of the state association of Israelite religious communities in Bavaria since 2002 and also president of the Central Council of Jews since the end of 2014. Schuster is also involved internationally. He is Vice President of the World Jewish Congress and the European Jewish Congress.