Netanyahu Born: Israel's Longest-Serving Prime Minister

Benjamin Netanyahu became Israel's longest-serving prime minister by combining hawkish security policies, free-market economics, and a combative political style that kept him at the center of Israeli politics for over three decades. He has served as prime minister in multiple non-consecutive terms, totaling more than sixteen years in office. Born in Tel Aviv on October 21, 1949, Netanyahu grew up partly in the United States, where his father, Benzion Netanyahu, was a historian at Cornell University. He served in the Israel Defense Forces' Sayeret Matkal special forces unit and participated in several operations, including the 1972 hijacking rescue at Sabena Flight 571. His older brother, Yonatan, was killed leading the Entebbe raid in 1976, an event that profoundly shaped Netanyahu's political identity and rhetoric about terrorism. He studied architecture and business at MIT, worked at the Boston Consulting Group, and entered Israeli politics through the Likud party. He became prime minister for the first time in 1996 at age 46, the youngest person to hold the office. He lost power in 1999, returned in 2009, and held office continuously until 2021, when a coalition of opposition parties unseated him. He returned to power in 2022. His tenure expanded Israeli settlements in the West Bank, a policy that drew international criticism and complicated peace negotiations. He led Israel to normalize relations with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco through the Abraham Accords in 2020, the most significant diplomatic breakthrough between Israel and Arab states since the Camp David Accords of 1978. He was indicted on charges of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust in 2019, becoming the first sitting Israeli prime minister to face criminal prosecution. He denied all charges and described the prosecution as a politically motivated "witch hunt." The trial is ongoing. His prosecution of military operations in Gaza following the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack drew intense international controversy, with critics accusing Israel of disproportionate force and supporters arguing the operations were a necessary response to terrorism.