Benjamin Netanyahu is the longest-serving prime minister of Israel since its inception.
Born in Tel Aviv on October 21, 1949, he grew up in Jerusalem before moving with his family to Pennsylvania during his high school years, where his father taught history. In 1967 Netanyahu returned to Israel and joined the IDF's Sayeret Matkal special forces unit, where he served until 1973.
He took part in many military operations, including a 1972 rescue mission of hostages in a hijacked Sabena airplane, during which he was shot in the shoulder. Netanyahu finished his military service in 1972, but returned to serve in the 1973 Yom Kippur War, after which he was promoted to the rank of Captain.
His brother Yonatan "Yoni," an IDF officer, was killed during Operation Entebbe in 1976 at the Entebbe Airport in Uganda where Israelis were being held hostage. His was the only death resulting from the mission.
He has degrees in architecture and business management from MIT. He also studied political science at MIT and Harvard University. He served as Israel's ambassador to the UN from 1984-1988, and as Minister of Foreign Affairs under Ariel Sharon's government.
In 1993 Netanyahu was elected Likud party chairman and served as the leader of the opposition until being elected prime minister in 1996. In 2009, he was elected prime minister for the second time, in January 2013 a third, and in March 2015 a fourth.
He is married to Sara Netanyahu with whom he has two children, Yair and Avner.
In 2018, the Mossad stole Iran's nuclear archive. Netanyahu later presented the information to the international community. Netanyahu strongly opposes a nuclear deal with Iran.
Under the rotation government set by Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, Netanyahu serves as the leader of the opposition.
The reports are heavily shrouded in secrecy, point fingers in different directions, and must be taken with a grain of salt.
Yisrael Hasson also condemned the decision to prioritize safeguarding the Prime Minister's son's reputation over national security.
The request requires the approval of ICC judges, but their decision has been delayed, partly because of several rounds of legal filings by Israel that have challenged the court's jurisdiction.
"We set December 2, 2024, as the start date for the defense stage, having considered all relevant factors, including the state of war," the court judges said.
The limited scope of the Israeli attack, which targeted only a few military bases and weapons storage facilities without causing widespread damage, does not necessitate an Iranian response.
Netanyahu urged Iranians to imagine their free lives without 'the tyrants of Tehran' in an unusual English message.
Speculation spiked after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu replaced Gallant with Katz that the attempts to draft Haredim would be halted, given Netanyahu and the haredi coalition parties' opposition.
It is still unclear if Eliezer Feldstein, the PM's media team advisor suspected of leaking the documents, did so at the prime minister's orders.
Yechiel Leiter’s appointment as ambassador ushers in a new era for Israel-US relations.
Senior members of the Haredi parties estimated that the conscription law would progress after Gallant's dismissal and his replacement with Katz.
JPOST Digital Library
