Who was Menachem Begin?
Maayan Jaffe Special to the Jewish Times When Menachem Begin became Prime Minister of Israel in 1977, it represented one of the biggest political comebacks in Israel’s history. The disciple of Vladimir (Ze’ev) Jabotinsky, the leader of the Revisionist Zionists, Begin had in the 1940s become leader of the “Irgun Zvai Le’umi” National Military Organization (known by the initials of its Hebrew name as “Etzel”), after immigrating to Palestine from Poland. Known for his charismatic speeches, he spent the beginning of his political career as head of the opposition to Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion. Shortly after Ben Gurion’s retirement in 1963 — as a result of various political scandals –– Begin’s rise began. He was a minister from 1967-1970 and then elected prime minister in 1977. His tenure is remembered for first signing the Camp David Accords and then a peace treaty with Egypt. As part of the deal with Egypt, Begin agreed to return the entire Sinai, which the Jewish State had won in the
Menachem Begin was Prime Minister of Israel from 1977 to 1983. Begin was born in Belarus in 1913. He became politically active at a very young age. In the 1930s, Begin was a member of a Polish zionist movement. He arrived in Palestine in 1942, with the help of the Polish émigré army and ended up joining Irgun, a militant organization that fought for the creation of a Jewish state in Palestine. Begin even became the commander of Irgun in 1943. Israel was finally established in 1948 and as a result Irgun was turned into a political party called Herut, or Freedom Party and Begin was elected president of this new formation. Later, Begin joined Likud and became its leader, winning the elections of 1977. Despite his militant past, Begin was able to sign a peace agreement with Egypt in 1979, which required that Israeli forced leave the Sinai peninsula. Begin and Egypt’s Anwar Sadat both won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1978. Begin resigned as prime minister in 1983, following the invasion of Leba
