Ehud Barak Biography Quotes 3 Report mistakes

Early Life and Education
Ehud Barak was born on February 12, 1942, in the kibbutz of Mishmar HaSharon in what was then Mandatory Palestine. Raised in a pioneering environment that prized self-reliance and learning, he showed early aptitude for science and music, notably the piano. As a young adult he Hebraized his family name from Brog to Barak, a step common among Israelis of his generation. While already on a demanding military track, he completed a bachelor's degree in physics and mathematics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and later earned a master's degree in engineering-economic systems from Stanford University, an academic grounding that would inform his methodical, data-driven style in command and politics.

Military Career
Barak enlisted in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in 1959 and rapidly rose through elite units to command Sayeret Matkal, the General Staff Reconnaissance Unit. He led the 1972 rescue of hostages from Sabena Flight 571, an operation that also involved a young Benjamin Netanyahu among the assault team. In 1973 he took part in Operation Spring of Youth in Beirut, a deeply clandestine raid against Palestinian militant leaders, emblematic of the daring and improvisation associated with Sayeret Matkal.

Over the following decade Barak alternated between field command and strategic posts. He served as chief of the Intelligence Directorate (Aman), commanded Central Command, and became deputy chief of staff. In 1991 he was appointed IDF chief of staff, working closely with political leaders across the aisle during a turbulent era. Under Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir and then under Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres, he managed the army's posture through the early peace process years and the implementation phase of the 1994 Israel-Jordan treaty signed by Rabin and King Hussein. His tenure emphasized modernization, precision capabilities, and coordination with the United States, burnishing a reputation as Israel's most decorated soldier.

Entry into Politics
After retiring from the military in 1995, Barak entered politics with the Labor Party. He first served as Minister of the Interior in Rabin's government. Following Rabin's assassination, Shimon Peres elevated him to Foreign Minister, placing him in high-level contacts with American officials as Israel navigated fraught negotiations and a changing regional map. When Peres narrowly lost the 1996 election to Benjamin Netanyahu, Barak spent a period in opposition. In 1997 he succeeded Peres as Labor Party leader, setting the stage for his own run for national leadership.

Prime Minister
Barak won the premiership in 1999, defeating Netanyahu in a direct election. He assembled a broad if fragile coalition that included centrists and religious parties and set three urgent priorities: reviving negotiations with Syria, pursuing a final-status agreement with the Palestinians, and ending Israel's protracted military presence in southern Lebanon. In May 2000 he unilaterally withdrew Israeli forces from Lebanon to the international border, a move later certified by the United Nations under Secretary-General Kofi Annan and welcomed by many Israelis weary of the long conflict with Hezbollah.

On the Syrian track, Barak engaged through Washington with Hafez al-Assad, working with U.S. President Bill Clinton and Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk al-Sharaa. Talks at Shepherdstown and a later Clinton-Assad meeting in Geneva failed to produce a deal. With the Palestinians, Barak and his foreign minister Shlomo Ben-Ami led the Israeli side at the July 2000 Camp David Summit alongside Clinton and Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat, with negotiators such as Saeb Erekat central to the Palestinian team. The summit ended without agreement, and by late September 2000 the Second Intifada erupted, dramatically narrowing Barak's maneuvering room at home and abroad. His coalition splintered amid escalating violence. In early 2001 he lost a special prime ministerial election to Ariel Sharon and left office.

Private Sector Interlude
After his electoral defeat, Barak stepped back from politics and moved into the private sector. He advised technology and investment ventures and remained a sought-after commentator on strategy and national security. His public interventions kept him visible, particularly when debates centered on Israel's deterrence, the lessons of asymmetric conflict, and relations with the United States.

Return as Defense Minister
Barak returned to frontline politics in 2007, retaking the Labor leadership and becoming Defense Minister under Prime Minister Ehud Olmert after the Second Lebanon War. He worked closely with Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and senior IDF commanders, including Gabi Ashkenazi, to restore readiness and recalibrate deterrence. During Olmert's final months, Barak oversaw Operation Cast Lead (2008, 2009) against Hamas in Gaza following years of rocket fire.

After the 2009 election, he entered Benjamin Netanyahu's government as Defense Minister, a partnership that combined cooperation on key security files with occasional public friction. Barak was deeply involved in deliberations over Iran's nuclear program, coordinating with U.S. Defense Secretaries Robert Gates and later Leon Panetta and engaging with President Barack Obama's administration on sanctions, diplomacy, and contingencies. In 2011 he split from Labor to form the Independence (Atzmaut) faction to remain in the governing coalition. He appointed Benny Gantz as IDF chief of staff in 2011 and supported the 2011 prisoner exchange that brought home captured soldier Gilad Shalit. In late 2012 he directed Operation Pillar of Defense, a concentrated campaign against Hamas's rocket infrastructure. He announced his retirement from politics shortly thereafter and left office in 2013.

Later Activities and Public Voice
In subsequent years Barak returned to business and technology ventures while maintaining an active public profile. He published analyses, gave lectures on strategy and innovation, and became a prominent voice in debates over Israel's democratic institutions and civil-military relations. In 2019 he founded the Israel Democratic Party and joined forces with Meretz and Stav Shaffir in the Democratic Union alliance; the joint list entered the Knesset, though Barak himself did not take a seat. He continued to comment forcefully on security doctrine, the balance between diplomacy and force, and the risks of polarization. His interventions often placed him at odds with Netanyahu and aligned him with former colleagues like Gantz on institutional and constitutional questions.

Personal Life and Legacy
Barak's personal life has been anchored by a long-standing interest in music and science, pursuits that mirror his habit of rigorous preparation and a taste for creative problem-solving. He was married for many years to Nava Cohen-Barak, with whom he has three daughters, and later married Nili Priel. His public persona blends the cool precision of a physicist with the instincts of a commando, the product of years at the apex of special operations and strategic command.

Across decades, Barak worked alongside and often across from some of the most consequential figures of his era: Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres in the formative Oslo years, Benjamin Netanyahu and Ariel Sharon in cycles of rivalry and coalition, Ehud Olmert and Tzipi Livni during Gaza crises, and Bill Clinton, Hafez al-Assad, and Yasser Arafat during fateful diplomatic tests. His record is defined by boldness in the field, willingness to take political risks for strategic repositioning, and a hard-nosed but pragmatic approach to Israel's security. Whether praised for the Lebanon withdrawal and military professionalism or criticized for the failures of diplomacy in 2000, Ehud Barak remains a central figure in Israel's story, a soldier-statesman whose career illuminates the possibilities and limits of both force and negotiation in a turbulent region.