Elan Steinberg, the former World Jewish Congress executive vice president who helped lead efforts to obtain restitution for properties stolen during the Holocaust, has died.

Steinberg, 59, died in New York on Friday after a brief struggle with cancer, said Menachem Rosensaft, who, like Steinberg, is a vice president of the American Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors and Their Descendants.

Steinberg helped lead efforts in the 1990s that led Swiss banks, European governments and other entities to compensate victims of the Holocaust and their descendants.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

He left the WJC in 2004 in the midst of an internal battle subsequent to reports of mismanagement of funds at the organziation.

Steinberg was seen as allied with Isi Liebler, then the WJC’s senior vice president. Liebler had spearheaded efforts to uncover the wrongdoing but was isolated because he was also believed to be attempting to take over the organization from its then chairman, Edgar Bronfman, who was not implicated in the wrongdoing.

“Elan was a passionate advocate for the Jewish people, for the State of Israel, and for any Jew anywhere in the world who was persecuted or threatened,” Rosensaft said in a statement. “His brilliant mind and his great heart have no equal and are irreplaceable. He died tragically all too young, and the entire Jewish community is orphaned today.”

He is survived by his wife Sharon, his sons Max and Harry, his daughter Lena, and his brother Alex.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$90 $180

$360

Other amount