Shaul Mofaz

Born in Iran, Mofaz immigrated in 1957 to Israel. Straight from high school he joined the IDF in 1966 and served in the Paratroop Brigade. He participated in the Six-Day War, Yom Kippur War, Six-Day War, and Operation Entebbe with the Paratroopers and Sayeret Matkal[?], an elite special forces unit.

Mofaz was then appointed an infantry brigade commander for the 1982 conflict with the Lebanon. Afterwards he attended the US Marine Corps Command and Staff College in Quantico[?], Virginia. On his return he was briefly appointed commander of the Officers School, before returning to active service as commander of the Paratroop Brigade in 1986.

Shaul Mofaz served in a series of senior military posts, having been promoted to the rank of Brigadier General (1988). In 1993 he was made commander of the IDF forces in the West Bank. In 1994 he was promoted to Major General, commanding the Southern Corps. His rapid rise continued, in 1997 Mofaz was appointed Deputy Chief of the General Staff and in 1998 he was appointed Chief of the General Staff.

His term of Chief of Staff was noted for financial and structural reforms of the Israeli Army. But the most significant event in his tenure was the eruption of the Second Intifada. The tough tactics undertaken by Mofaz drew widespread concern from the international community. Controversy erupted over the offensive in Jenin, intermittent raids in Gaza, and the continued isolation of Yasser Arafat.

In 2002 Shaul Mofaz was appointed defense minister after a government crisis by Ariel Sharon.