Ariel Sharon

Prime Minister of Israel from 2001 to 2006 (1928-2014)

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Lived 1928–2014, aged 86Israel

Israel PoliticiansPolitician

Wikipedia
98 languages
Cross-language footprint
Rank in Israel
#16
Politicians
Era
1928–2014
Aged 86
Known for
Tsahal
1994

Summary

Updated 2026-09-07

Israeli general and prime minister whose military career and political decisions drew both fierce reverence and accusations of war crimes. An official inquiry found him personally responsible for the Sabra and Shatila massacre; he later orchestrated settlement expansion and Israel's withdrawal from Gaza before a stroke left him in a vegetative state for eigh

Biography

About

Born in 1928 to Russian Jewish immigrants in Palestine, Sharon rose through the Israeli Army from its founding in 1948, becoming what Yitzhak Rabin called "the greatest field commander in our history." He helped create Unit 101 and led operations including the 1953 Qibya massacre, then fought in the Suez Crisis, the Six-Day War, and the Yom Kippur War. As defense minister in 1982, he directed the Lebanon War; an inquiry held him personally responsible for the Sabra and Shatila massacre of Palestinian refugees, earning him the name "Butcher of Beirut" and costing him the post. He championed set…

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