Benjamin Netanyahu Biography

Prime Minister of Israel

Benjamin Netanyahu is a former prime minister of Israel and the leader of that nation's Likud Party. Born in Tel Aviv after Israel had gained independence, he studied for a few years in the United States before returning to Israel in 1967 for military service. His career in the U.S. and Israel went from business to politics, and he worked in the U.S. at the Israeli embassy and then as a representative at the United Nations. He was elected to the Knesset in 1988, and during the Gulf War of the early 1990s he strengthened his political position and emerged as a candidate for Prime Minister. He won the 1996 election, but was defeated in the election of 1999 by Ehud Barak. Netanyahu served as Minister of Foreign Affairs (2002-03) and Minister of Finance (2003-05) under Ariel Sharon, but left Sharon's government over policy differences. Netanyahu gained leadership of the Likud Party in 2005, and in 2009 he was their candidate for prime minister against Acting Prime Minister Tzipi Livni of the Kadima Party. Although the election on 10 February 2009 gave Kadima more seats in the Knesset, Likud's showing at the polls put Netanyahu in position to form a new government as prime minister.

Extra credit: Netanyahu has degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Other Israeli Prime Ministers have included Ariel Sharon, Golda Meir, David Ben-Gurion and Menachem Begin.