Outcry after Israeli rabbi calls earthquakes in Turkey and Syria 'divine justice'

A controversial Israeli rabbi has sparked outrage after claiming the devastating earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria on Monday last week was "divine justice".

Shmuel Eliyahu, who serves as the chief Rabbi of Safed in northern Israel and is a member of the Chief Rabbinate Council, claimed that God was punishing countries affected by the disaster because of their alleged mistreatment of the Jewish people.

"God is judging all the nations around us who wanted to invade our land and throw us into the sea," Eliyahu wrote in an op-ed published in the Olam Katan newspaper on Friday.

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Turkey-Syria earthquake: Controversial Israeli rabbi calls disaster 'divine justice'