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.
“If there are no genuine investigations or prosecutions, then the court has to investigate and prosecute where the legal conditions are met,” the ICC stated.
Schocken's comments were described as inflammatory, particularly in light of his earlier statements at a conference in London.
This decision came "in light of the recent statements by the publisher of ‘Haaretz’, Amos Schocken, who expressed support for terrorism and called for sanctions against the government".
The prime minister's request comes after the court refused his first appeal.
Israel should appeal and insist the ICC drop the arrest warrants, to reinforce the fact that the Israeli legal system is functioning, not collapsing.
"If the Chief of Staff and the Shin Bet chief are working around the clock in a conflict that has lasted over a year, how can they be subjected to such baseless attacks?" Cohen asked.
A far-reaching consequence of the ICC warrants will be difficulties in exporting arms to Israel because of the fear that they will be used to commit war crimes.
IDF 36th Division raids 150 targets, kills dozen of terrorists in two-month op. • Beirut's suburbs hit by waves of air strikes
"The ICC plays a crucial role in ensuring accountability for serious crimes," Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide stated.
Israeli families of hostages and officials advocating for their release are closely monitoring US President-elect Donald Trump’s moves.
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