Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel

About the Author

Several men had a significant hand in the drafting of the declaration of independence. Pinchas Rosen was born Felix Rosenblüth on May 1, 1887, in Berlin, Germany. He immigrated to Palestine in 1926 and spent most of his adult life in politics. After Israel declared its independence, he was elected to the Knesset—the Israeli parliament—and he was the nation's first minister of justice. He died on May 3, 1978. Later drafts were the work of several figures, including Rosen. One was David Remez, born David Drabkin in the Russian Empire (in what is now Belarus) in 1886. He immigrated to Palestine in 1913 and worked in a variety of government and trade union posts. He was Israel's first minister of transportation before his death on May 19, 1951. Haim-Moshe Shapira, too, was born in the Russian Empire (Belarus), on March 26, 1902. He immigrated to Palestine in 1925 and was active in the Zionist movement. After Israeli independence, he served in a variety of ministries until his death on July 16, 1970. Moshe Sharett was born Moshe Shertok in the Russian Empire (in today's Ukraine) on October 10, 1894. He immigrated to Palestine in 1906. He was Israel's second prime minister and died on July 7, 1965. Aharon Zisling, born in the Russian Empire (Belarus) on February 26, 1901, immigrated to Palestine in 1914. He served in the Knesset after independence and died on January 16, 1964.

The chief architect of Israeli independence and the leading signer of the declaration was David Ben-Gurion, the nation's first prime minister (who served a second term after Sharett). Ben-Gurion was born David Grün in the Russian Empire (in today's Poland) on October 16, 1886. An ardent Zionist, he was expelled from Palestine for his political activities in 1915. He then moved to New York City, though he returned to Palestine after World War I to continue his involvement in Zionist activities. Chief among these activities was his service as the chairman of the executive committee of the Jewish Agency for Palestine, essentially the Jewish government in Palestine prior to Israeli independence. After independence, he served two terms as Israel's prime minister (1948–1953 and 1955–1963). He died on December 1, 1973.