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Israel Mourns Passing of Builder and Defender of Israel

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Long-time Israeli Knesset member, former Defense Minister and military commander Binyamin "Fuad" Ben-Eliezer died at age 80 on Sunday. 

Ben-Eliezer's life personified the Jewish story of returning to the ancient homeland and building the nascent state of Israel. 

 "Fuad served the State of Israel for decades as a fighter, commander, public servant and senior government minister," said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a statement. 

"I knew him and I esteemed his contribution and his special personality. In my many conversations with him, Fuad expressed his concern for – and commitment to – the future of the State of Israel that he loved so much," Netanyahu said.

Born in 1936 in Basra, Iraq, Ben-Eliezer immigrated to Israel on his own at 14-years-old in 1950.  After arriving he changed his name to Binyamin but he was always known affectionately by his given Arabic name,Fuad.

Four years later he was drafted into the IDF and was a commander in both the 1967 Six-Day War and 1973 Yom Kippur War. He was wounded during the War of Attrition. 

He served as the IDF liaison between Lebanese Christian militias and Israel; was the military governor of Judea and Samaria from 1978-81; and Coordinator of (Israeli) Government activities in the Territories from 1983-84. He completed his military service at the rank of Brigadier-General before retiring in 1984.

"The Iraqi-born Ben-Eliezer was part of a generation of IDF commanders who hailed from the Middle Eastern immigrations and through battlefield bravery paved their way to political prominence," Amotz Asa-El wrote in an analysis published in the Jerusalem Post. 

Ben-Eliezer joined politics in 1984 and made his way through a number of political parties, including leader of the Labor Party.  During his political career he served as Minister of Construction and Housing, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Communications, Minister of Defense (during the second intifada), Minister of National Infrastructure and Minister of Industry, Trade, and Labor. 

In 1994, then Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin sent Ben-Eliezer as the first government minister to conduct secret negotiations with PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat.

Perhaps tragically, Ben-Eliezer spent the last two years of his life fighting a legal battle that included various financial charges such as bribery, money laundering, fraud, and breach of trust. 

He retired from politics nearly two years ago to concentrate on his legal battles.  

"It should have ended more admirably, but Binyamin Ben-Eliezer's eventful life proceeded from military distinction through political mountaineering to legal disgrace, and the latter sealed his career and heralded his death," Asa-El wrote.

Despite the legal trouble, others praised Ben-Eliezer.

"Fuad was a man of many merits, who gave the best years of his life to defending and building up the state," President Reuven Rivlin said. 

"On his passing, we will recall his love of this country, his dedication to its security and everything he gave to it, and contributed to its development," Rivlin concluded.

"Fuad devoted the most and best of his years to fortifying the Jewish people in its homeland, and was an important and dominant voice in our public lives over many years," said Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein.

"Aside from his unique sense of humor, he will long be remembered as a special figure," Edelstein said. "Blessed be his memory and his deeds." 

 
 

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