Shimon Peres

Shimon Peres has been the President of Israel since 2007. After immigrating to Israel as a child, he joined the military during the War for Independence. After the war, he was a key negotiator, securing funding for the Dimona nuclear reactor, which some believe produces nuclear weapons. A Knesset member for nearly 50 years, he was Prime Minister twice. He shared the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize for his role in secret negotiations leading to the Oslo Accords.

A member of the Labor Party for most of his political career, Peres joined the moderate Kadima Party founded in 2005 by Ariel Sharon. Two years after narrowly being elected President in 2007, he controversially chose Binyamin Netanyahu as the next Prime Minister, even though Tzipi Livni and Kadima had received more votes. Peres has publicly lauded the changes of the Arab Spring has an opportunity to reopen the stalled peace process.

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