Moshe Arens
Encyclopedia
Moshe Arens is an Israeli aeronautical engineer, researcher and former diplomat and politician. A member of the Knesset
between 1973 and 1992 and again from 1999 until 2003, he served as Minister of Defense three times and once as Minister of Foreign Affairs
. Arens has also served as the Israeli ambassador to the U.S. and was professor at the Technion in Haifa
.
, Lithuania, Arens immigrated to the United States
with his family in 1939 and became an American citizen. As a youth, Arens became a leader in the Betar
youth movement. He studied engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
and aeronautical engineering at the California Institute of Technology
. During World War II
, Arens served in the United States Army Corps of Engineers
. After Israeli independence in 1948, Arens made aliyah
and joined the Irgun
. He later became a founding member of the Herut
party which grew out of it.
Between 1957 and 1962 Arens worked as a Professor for aeronautics at the Technion. From 1962 until 1971 he was a Deputy Director General at Israel Aircraft Industries
, and won the Israel Defense Prize
in 1971. After the Yom Kippur War
he entered politics and was elected to the Knesset
as a member of Likud
in the 1973 elections
. After being re-elected in 1977
, he became chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee
.
He was re-elected again in 1981
, but resigned from the Knesset on 19 January 1982 when appointed ambassador to the United States. He returned to Israel in February 1983 after being appointed Minister of Defense, replacing Ariel Sharon
, who had been forced out of office following the Kahan Commission
's report on the Sabra and Shatila massacre
.
He was re-elected in 1984
, but was only appointed Minister without Portfolio
. After another re-election in 1988
he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs, and in 1990 returned to the Defense portfolio.
After Likud lost the 1992 elections
, Arens retired from politics. However, he returned in 1999 to challenge Binyamin Netanyahu for the Likud leadership. Although he failed in his challenge, winning only 18% of the vote, Netanyahu appointed him Minister of Defense, replacing Yitzhak Mordechai
, who had left Likud to establish the Centre Party
.
Although Arens returned to the Knesset after the 1999 elections, Likud lost the elections and he left the cabinet
. He lost his seat for the final time in 2003.
Today Arens is Chairman of the International Board of Governors of the Ariel University Center of Samaria and writes for Haaretz
.
Knesset
The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...
between 1973 and 1992 and again from 1999 until 2003, he served as Minister of Defense three times and once as Minister of Foreign Affairs
Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel
The Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel is the political head of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The position is one of the most important in the Israeli cabinet after Prime Minister and Defense Minister...
. Arens has also served as the Israeli ambassador to the U.S. and was professor at the Technion in Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
.
Biography
Born in KaunasKaunas
Kaunas is the second-largest city in Lithuania and has historically been a leading centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the biggest city and the center of a powiat in Trakai Voivodeship of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since 1413. During Russian Empire occupation...
, Lithuania, Arens immigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
with his family in 1939 and became an American citizen. As a youth, Arens became a leader in the Betar
Betar
The Betar Movement is a Revisionist Zionist youth movement founded in 1923 in Riga, Latvia, by Vladimir Jabotinsky. It has been traditionally linked to the original Herut and then Likud political parties of Israel, and was closely affiliated with the pre-Israel Revisionist Zionist splinter group...
youth movement. He studied engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
and aeronautical engineering at the California Institute of Technology
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech has six academic divisions with strong emphases on science and engineering...
. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Arens served in the United States Army Corps of Engineers
United States Army Corps of Engineers
The United States Army Corps of Engineers is a federal agency and a major Army command made up of some 38,000 civilian and military personnel, making it the world's largest public engineering, design and construction management agency...
. After Israeli independence in 1948, Arens made aliyah
Aliyah
Aliyah is the immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel . It is a basic tenet of Zionist ideology. The opposite action, emigration from Israel, is referred to as yerida . The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile...
and joined the Irgun
Irgun
The Irgun , or Irgun Zevai Leumi to give it its full title , was a Zionist paramilitary group that operated in Mandate Palestine between 1931 and 1948. It was an offshoot of the earlier and larger Jewish paramilitary organization haHaganah...
. He later became a founding member of the Herut
Herut
Herut was the major right-wing political party in Israel from the 1940s until its formal merger into Likud in 1988, and an adherent of Revisionist Zionism.-History:...
party which grew out of it.
Between 1957 and 1962 Arens worked as a Professor for aeronautics at the Technion. From 1962 until 1971 he was a Deputy Director General at Israel Aircraft Industries
Israel Aircraft Industries
Israel Aerospace Industries or IAI is Israel's prime aerospace and aviation manufacturer, producing aerial systems for both military and civilian usage. It has 16,000 employees as of 2007...
, and won the Israel Defense Prize
Israel Defense Prize
The Israel Defense Prize, in honor of Eliyahu Golomb, is a prize awarded annually to people and organizations who made significant contributions to the defense of the State of Israel....
in 1971. After the Yom Kippur War
Yom Kippur War
The Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War or October War , also known as the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and the Fourth Arab-Israeli War, was fought from October 6 to 25, 1973, between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria...
he entered politics and was elected to the Knesset
Knesset
The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...
as a member of Likud
Likud
Likud is the major center-right political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin in an alliance with several right-wing and liberal parties. Likud's victory in the 1977 elections was a major turning point in the country's political history, marking the first time the left had...
in the 1973 elections
Israeli legislative election, 1973
The Elections for the eighth Knesset were held on 31 December 1973. Voter turnout was 78.6%.-Results:1 Aryeh Eliav left the Alignment and merged with Ratz to form Ya'ad - Civil Rights Movement...
. After being re-elected in 1977
Israeli legislative election, 1977
The Elections for the ninth Knesset were held on 17 May 1977. For the first time in Israeli political history, the right-wing, led by Likud, won the election, ending almost 30 years of rule by the left-wing Alignment and its predecessor, Mapai...
, he became chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee
Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee
The Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee is a permanent Knesset committee which oversees key Foreign and Defense areas, including the drafting of legislation, supervision over related government ministries and the approval of their budgests...
.
He was re-elected again in 1981
Israeli legislative election, 1981
Elections for the tenth Knesset were held in Israel on 30 June 1981. Despite last minute polls suggesting a victory for Shimon Peres's Alignment, Menachem Begin's Likud won by just one seat...
, but resigned from the Knesset on 19 January 1982 when appointed ambassador to the United States. He returned to Israel in February 1983 after being appointed Minister of Defense, replacing Ariel Sharon
Ariel Sharon
Ariel Sharon is an Israeli statesman and retired general, who served as Israel’s 11th Prime Minister. He has been in a permanent vegetative state since suffering a stroke on 4 January 2006....
, who had been forced out of office following the Kahan Commission
Kahan Commission
The Kahan Commission , formally known as the Commission of Inquiry into the Events at the Refugee Camps in Beirut, was established by the Israeli government on 28 September 1982, to investigate the Sabra and Shatila Massacre . The Kahan Commission was chaired by the President of the Supreme Court,...
's report on the Sabra and Shatila massacre
Sabra and Shatila massacre
The Sabra and Shatila massacre took place in the Sabra and Shatila Palestinian refugee camps in Beirut, Lebanon between September 16 and September 18, 1982, during the Lebanese civil war. Palestinian and Lebanese civilians were massacred in the camps by Christian Lebanese Phalangists while the camp...
.
He was re-elected in 1984
Israeli legislative election, 1984
Elections for the eleventh Knesset were held in Israel on 23 July 1984. Voter turnout was 78.8%. The results saw the Alignment return to being the largest party in the Knesset, a status it had lost in 1977...
, but was only appointed Minister without Portfolio
Minister without Portfolio
A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister that does not head a particular ministry...
. After another re-election in 1988
Israeli legislative election, 1988
Elections for the twelfth Knesset were held in Israel on 1 November 1988. Voter turnout was 79.7%.-Results:1 Five members of the Likud left to form the Party for the Advancement of the Zionist Idea; after two returned, the party was renamed the New Liberal Party...
he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs, and in 1990 returned to the Defense portfolio.
After Likud lost the 1992 elections
Israeli legislative election, 1992
Elections for the thirteenth Knesset were held in Israel on 23 June 1992. The result was a victory for the left, led by Yitzhak Rabin's Labor Party, though their win was at least partially due to several small right-wing parties narrowly failing to cross the electoral threshold and thus effectively...
, Arens retired from politics. However, he returned in 1999 to challenge Binyamin Netanyahu for the Likud leadership. Although he failed in his challenge, winning only 18% of the vote, Netanyahu appointed him Minister of Defense, replacing Yitzhak Mordechai
Yitzhak Mordechai
Yitzhak Mordechai is an Israeli former general and politician. He served as a member of the Knesset between 1996 and 2001, and as Minister of Defense and Minister of Transport. He retired from political life after being indicted for sexual assaults during his military service and later...
, who had left Likud to establish the Centre Party
Centre Party (Israel)
The Centre Party , originally known as Israel in the Centre, was a short-lived political party in Israel. Formed in 1999 by former Defense Minister Yitzhak Mordechai, the aim was to create a group of moderates to challenge both Binyamin Netanyahu on the right and opposition leader Ehud Barak's...
.
Although Arens returned to the Knesset after the 1999 elections, Likud lost the elections and he left the cabinet
Cabinet of Israel
The Cabinet of Israel is a formal body composed of government officials called ministers, chosen and led by the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister must appoint members based on the distribution of votes to political parties during legislative elections, and its composition must be approved by a...
. He lost his seat for the final time in 2003.
Today Arens is Chairman of the International Board of Governors of the Ariel University Center of Samaria and writes for Haaretz
Haaretz
Haaretz is Israel's oldest daily newspaper. It was founded in 1918 and is now published in both Hebrew and English in Berliner format. The English edition is published and sold together with the International Herald Tribune. Both Hebrew and English editions can be read on the Internet...
.
External links
- Charlie Rose – Moshe Arens
- Moshe Arens Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs