Background

Yitzhak Jeziernicky was born in the predominantly Jewish village of Ruzhany, Grodno province, Russian Empire (now Pruzhany, Brest Region, Belarus), the son of Perla and Shlomo, owner of a leather factory. Shamir later moved to historical Poland.

Education

Having finished a Jewish school in Bialystok, he entered the law faculty of the University of Warsaw, where he became an active member of the Betar Zionist youth organization. In 1935, he abandoned studies, emigrated illegally to Palestine and enrolled at the University Jerusalem. Later, he studied at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, but in 1937 he joined the underground organization "Irgun" ("Etzel").

Career

In 1937 he joined the militant organization Irgun Zvai Leumi, which opposed actively the British mandate over Palestine. However, in 1940 I.Shamir left the organization, as he considered it to be «too tolerant» and joined the Israel Freedom Fighters, a terrorist organization later known as the Stern Gang. He participated actively in many terrorist acts against the British authorities. In 1941, he was arrested but managed to escape under the guise of a rabbi. Following the death of A. Stern, the founder of the group, I.Shamir reorganized the Israel Freedom Fighters and became its leader. In 1946 he was arrested again, but managed to escape to Eritrea, then to the neighbouring French colony Djibouti and later to France, where he asked for political asylum. He came back to Palestine in 1948, after the Jewish state had been established. He became the leader of the Israel Freedom Fighters again.

In 1955 Shamir was employed by the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad, where he rose to the post of deputy director. In 1965 he left Mossad to be engaged in private commerce for 5 years.

In 1970 he joined Herut party. He was a member of the Executive Committee and in 1975 he became its chairman. Being a member of Herut enabled him to be elected to the Knesset (Parliament), and to become its speaker in 1977. In March, 1980, he was appointed minister of foreign affairs in the government of M. Begin, and following the retirement of M.Begin in 1983, he became prime minister of Israel.

Following the election of 1984 he gave up his post to Sh.Peres but in October of 1986 under an agreement within the coalition on a makeshift he resumed the office of prime minister. I. Shamir followed the initial course to closer relations with the USA, contributed to the progress in developing relations with the USSR (by the exchange of consular delegations ), offered a «limited autonomy» to Palestinians.

In December 1988 the elections to the 12th Knesset took place. After long negotiations within the coalition a new government of national unity was formed with Shamir as its head. But in 1990 the government suffered a nonconfidence vote and after three -month negotiations, a new Israeli government was formed chaired by I.Shamir. It fell in 1992.

In 1993 he visited Ruzhany, his birthplace, where his relatives were buried at a Jewish cemetery. His mother and two sisters became victims of the Holocaust during World War II.

Achievements

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  Contributed to the progress and developing of relations with the Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics (by exchange of consular delegation), offered a "limited autonomy" to Palestine.

Works

More photos

• book

  • Summing Up: An Autobiography 1994
  • Summing Up: The Memoirs of Yitzhak Shamir 1994
  • Israel's role in a changing Middle East 1982

Politics

Y. Shamir acted against British mandate over Palestine.

Views

Quotations: All of the land of Israel is ours.

Yitzhak Shamir

I believe that the will of the people is resolved by a strong leadership. Even in a democratic society, events depend on a strong leadership with a strong power of persuasion, and not on the opinion of the masses.

Yitzhak Shamir

In this part of the world, Jews and Arabs will live together forever.

Yitzhak Shamir

Israel's capital will never again be a divided city, a city with a wall at its center, a city in which two flags fly. This city, will, in its entirety, absorb immigrants, welcome pilgrims and be the eternal capital of Israel forever.

Yitzhak Shamir

We have said that Israel has had a very bad history with the United Nations, and whoever cares for himself in Israel distances himself from that Organization.

Yitzhak Shamir

We must never bend too much.

Yitzhak Shamir

Membership

• Betar Zionist youth organisation , Poland

• Zvai Leumi , Israel

  1937 - 1940

• 

  Israel Freedom Fighters , Israel

  1940

• 

  Herut , Israel

  1970

• Mossad , Israel

  1955 - 1965

Personality

Quotes from others about the person

• According to Israeli politician Ruby Rivlin, Shamir was "an honest politician who performed his duties with utter integrity."
  
  Former head of Israeli Mossad, Shabtai Shavit, calls him a "remarkably honest man."

Connections

In 1944 he married Shulamit Shamir (born in 1923), whom he met in a detention camp. Shulamit immigrated to Israel from Bulgaria in 1941 and was sent to prison because she came to Mandatory Palestine illegally, on a rickety boat. They have two children, Yair and Gilada.

Wife:

Shulamit Shamir

She died on 29 July 2011 at the age of 88 years.

Son:

Yair Shamir

The Israeli Air Force Colonel, retired. Member of "Israel Our Home".

Yair Shamir is married to Ella, have three children and seven grandchildren.

Daughter:

Gilada Diamant

References

• The visit of Prime Minister Yitzchak Shamir at the Beth Jacob Teachers Seminary in Jerusalem.
• Jewish Terrorism in Israel (Columbia Studies in Terrorism and Irregular Warfare)
• The Stern Gang
• Conversations with Yitzhak Shamir
  2000
• Likud Leaders: The Lives and Careers of Menahem Begin, Yitzhak Shamir, Benjamin Netanyahu and Ariel Sharon
  2015