Benjamin Netanyahu is the longest-serving prime minister of Israel since its inception.
Born in Tel Aviv on October 21, 1949, he grew up in Jerusalem before moving with his family to Pennsylvania during his high school years, where his father taught history. In 1967 Netanyahu returned to Israel and joined the IDF's Sayeret Matkal special forces unit, where he served until 1973.
He took part in many military operations, including a 1972 rescue mission of hostages in a hijacked Sabena airplane, during which he was shot in the shoulder. Netanyahu finished his military service in 1972, but returned to serve in the 1973 Yom Kippur War, after which he was promoted to the rank of Captain.
His brother Yonatan "Yoni," an IDF officer, was killed during Operation Entebbe in 1976 at the Entebbe Airport in Uganda where Israelis were being held hostage. His was the only death resulting from the mission.
He has degrees in architecture and business management from MIT. He also studied political science at MIT and Harvard University. He served as Israel's ambassador to the UN from 1984-1988, and as Minister of Foreign Affairs under Ariel Sharon's government.
In 1993 Netanyahu was elected Likud party chairman and served as the leader of the opposition until being elected prime minister in 1996. In 2009, he was elected prime minister for the second time, in January 2013 a third, and in March 2015 a fourth.
He is married to Sara Netanyahu with whom he has two children, Yair and Avner.
In 2018, the Mossad stole Iran's nuclear archive. Netanyahu later presented the information to the international community. Netanyahu strongly opposes a nuclear deal with Iran.
Under the rotation government set by Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, Netanyahu serves as the leader of the opposition.
The prime minister insisted that he has "vast support" from the Israeli public.
The coming days and weeks will likely include a lot of political drama, while in the background, IDF soldiers continue to fight in Gaza, and 100,000 Israelis remain away from their homes.
Gallant's comments immediately set off a storm of responses from senior ministers, and Netanyahu himself was quick to respond with a video statement.
Gallant said the IDF is acting in Rafah to finish off Hamas's battalions, find the hostages, and kill Hamas leadership. But as long as Hamas tries to come back, he warned the IDF may need to return.
A committee will also be formed that will determine the minimum wage in the various sectors where foreign workers will be employed, as well as the system of bringing workers into the sector.
Benny Gantz criticized the decision, calling it "a political maneuver" that is irrelevant to the reality after October 7. Lapid
Journalist Chaim Levinson urges local leaders, especially Sderot's mayor, to withdraw support for Prime Minister Netanyahu due to ongoing security concerns.
A person reportedly shouted "garbage" and "bring back the hostage" at Netanyahu as he was exiting one of the Remembrance Day ceremonies.
Herzog: Israel's 76th year has been "marked by enormous pain and loss."
Mourners yelled out at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he spoke at a ceremony on Jerusalem's Mount Herzl, and one man flew an Israeli flag that said "7.10" on it as he spoke.
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