The leading French public intellectual Raphael Drai died today, aged 73. He had been suffering from cancer for some time.
Born in Constantine, Algeria, Raphael Drai was sent by his father to France in 1961 for fear that he might be conscripted in the OAS (pied noir militia).
He was a university professor of politics and became dean of the law and politics faculty at the university of Amiens. In 1998 he began teaching in Marseille and Aix-en Provence.
He blended political science with psychoanalysis and was well-versed in Judaism. A disciple of Emmanuel Levinas, Andre Neher and Eliane Amado Levy-Valensi, he was a great believer in interfaith dialogue.
He was a firm critic of Shlomo Sand, Noam Chomsky and Elie Barnavi, accusing them of undermining Israel's legitimacy.
In 2014, this prolific author launched himself into writing for the theatre. The subject of his play INRI, le procès de Jésus was Jesus.
Raphael Drai is survived by his wife and two children. He is expected to be buried in Israel where his daughter lives.
Memories of Constantine (French)
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