EBAN, ABBA

Eban, Abba: translation

(formerly Aubrey)

(1915-2002)

Born in Cape Town, South Africa, to Lithuanian-Jewish parents, he grew up inGreat Britain. While a student of Middle Eastern languages and classics at Cambridge University, he founded the University Labour Society, was president of the Students' Union, and was active in debating andZionistcircles. During World War II, Eban served as a major to the British minister of state in Cairo and then as an intelligence officer inJerusalem.In 1946, he became the political information officer in London for theJewish Agencyand, the following year, the liaison officer for the Jewish Agency with theUnited Nations Special Committee on Palestine(UNSCOP). In May 1948, he became Israel's permanent delegate to theUnited Nations. From 1950 to 1959, he served as both Israel's ambassador to theUnited Statesand to the United Nations.

In 1959, Eban was elected to theKnesseton theMapailist. He served as minister ofeducationand culture from 1960 to 1963 and was deputyprime ministerfrom 1964 to 1965. He also served as president of theWeizmann Institute of Scienceat Rehovot from 1959 to 1966. In 1966, Eban became minister of foreign affairs, a position that he held until 1974. He served as chairman of the Knesset Committee for Security and Foreign Affairs from 1984 to 1988. In 1988, theIsrael Labor Partydropped him from its list of candidates for theKnesset election. After retiring from party politics, he continued to be a keen observer of and prolific commentator about security andforeign policyand Israel's place in the international system.