(1923- ) A Jewish
Israeli political figure. Peres immigrated to
Palestine from Poland in 1932. He was a member of the Jewish paramilitary group
Haganah (the precursor to the Israeli army and, after the establishment of
Israel in 1948, held several positions in the Ministry of Defense. Throughout his political career, he has been a member of four political parties, including Labor and
Kadima. He was first elected to the Israeli parliament in 1959 and has almost continually held various governmental positions, including Prime Minister from 1984-1986 and 1995-1996, Foreign Minister from 1986-1988, 1992-1995 and 2001-2002, and President from 2007-2014. Peres received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994 for his role in the signing of the
Oslo Accords. The prize was awarded to him along with Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman
Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister
Yitzhak Rabin. In 1996, he established the Peres Center for Peace to further the peace process through economic and social cooperation with the Palestinians, and is often considered a "dove" in Israeli political parlance, though he has vocally supported many of Israel's military operations, including the 2014 Gaza War. See "
The Mixed Legacy Of Shimon Peres," Daniel Gavron, the Daily Beast, Feb 4, 2013.