Menachem Begin

Prime Minister of Israel

16 August 1913 Brest, Russian Empire

9 March 1992(1992-03-09) (78) Tel Aviv, Israel

21 June 1977 – 10 October 1983

6th Prime Minister of Israel (1977-83) Menachem BeginBegin in 19786th Prime Minister of IsraelIn office 21 June 1977 – 10 October 1983PresidentEphraim Katzir Yitzhak Navon Chaim HerzogPreceded by Yitzhak RabinSucceeded by Yitzhak ShamirMinisterial roles1967–1970 Minister in the PM's Office1980–1981 Minister of Defense1983 Minister of DefenseFaction represented in the Knesset1948–1965 Herut1965–1973 Gahal1973–1981 Likud Personal detailsBorn(1913-08-16 ) 16 August 1913 Brest, Russian EmpireDied9 March 1992(1992-03-09) (aged 78) Tel Aviv, IsraelSpouse(s)Aliza Arnold ​ ​(m. 1939; died 1982)​ChildrenZe'ev Binyamin Hasia LeahAlma materUniversity of WarsawSignatureMilitary serviceAllegiance  Poland YishuvBranch/service Anders' Army (1941–42) Irgun (1943–48)Rank Corporal Leader of the IrgunBattles/wars Jewish insurgency in Mandatory Palestine 1947–48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine Menachem Begin (Hebrew: מְנַחֵם בֵּגִין ‎ Menaḥem Begin (IPA:  ( listen ) ); Polish: Mieczysław Biegun (Polish birth name), Polish: Menachem Begin (Polish documents, 1931–1937); Russian: Менахем Вольфович Бегин Menakhem Volfovich Begin; 16 August 1913 – 9 March 1992) was an Israeli politician, founder of Likud and the sixth Prime Minister of Israel. Before the creation of the state of Israel, he was the leader of the Zionist militant group Irgun, the Revisionist breakaway from the larger Jewish paramilitary organization Haganah. He proclaimed a revolt, on 1 February 1944, against the British mandatory government, which was opposed by the Jewish Agency. As head of the Irgun, he targeted the British in Palestine. Later, the Irgun fought the Arabs during the 1947–48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine and its chief Begin was also noted as "leader of the notorious terrorist organisation" by the British government and banned from entering the United Kingdom. Begin was elected to the first Knesset, as head of Herut, the party he founded, and was at first on the political fringe, embodying the opposition to the Mapai-led government and Israeli establishment. He remained in opposition in the eight consecutive elections (except for a national unity government around the Six-Day War), but became more acceptable to the political center. His 1977 electoral victory and premiership ended three decades of Labor Party political dominance. Begin's most significant achievement as Prime Minister was the signing of a peace treaty with Egypt in 1979, for which he and Anwar Sadat shared the Nobel Prize for Peace. In the wake of the Camp David Accords, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) withdrew from the Sinai Peninsula, which was captured from Egypt in the Six-Day War. Later, Begin's government promoted the construction of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Begin authorized the bombing of the Osirak nuclear plant in Iraq and the invasion of Lebanon in 1982 to fight PLO strongholds there, igniting the 1982 Lebanon War. As Israeli military involvement in Lebanon deepened, and the Sabra and Shatila massacre, carried out by Christian Phalangist militia allies of the Israelis, shocked world public opinion, Begin grew increasingly isolated. As IDF forces remained mired in Lebanon and the economy suffered from hyperinflation, the public pressure on Begin mounted. Depressed by the death of his wife Aliza in November 1982, he gradually withdrew from public life, until his resignation in October 1983.