Ariel Sharon

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One of the most deeply polarising figures in Israeli history, Ariel Sharon served as the country’s 11th Prime Minister from 2001 to 2006.

Known by the nicknames “The Bulldozer” (for his uncompromising political style) and “Arik” (to his friends), his life was defined by high-stakes military commands and dramatic political shifts.

Sharon fought in all of Israel’s major wars from its founding in 1948 until his retirement as a Major General.

He earned legendary status among many Israelis for his daring leadership in the Six-Day War (1967) and the Yom Kippur War (1973).

His crossing of the Suez Canal in 1973 is often cited as the turning point that won the war in the Sinai.

As Defence Minister in 1982, he masterminded the invasion of Lebanon.

An Israeli inquiry found him “indirectly responsible” for the Sabra and Shatila massacre, where hundreds to thousands of Palestinian refugees were killed by Lebanese Christian militias under Israeli control.

Dubbed the “Butcher of Beirut”, he resigned as Defence Minister in 1983.

Sharon was a founding member of the right-wing Likud party and a long-time champion of the illegal Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza.

He was elected Prime Minister in a 2001 landslide, promising security during the Second Intifada – an uprising many critics believe was sparked by his own provocative visit to the Temple Mount in 2000.

In a shocking reversal of his previous ideology, Sharon ordered the unilateral withdrawal of all Israeli settlers and troops from the Gaza Strip in 2005.

This move split his party, leading him to form the centrist Kadima party.

He orchestrated the construction of the controversial separation barrier in the West Bank, which he argued was necessary to stop suicide bombings.

At the height of his power and in the middle of an election campaign, Sharon suffered a massive stroke on 4 January 2006. He remained in a permanent vegetative state for eight years, eventually passing away on 11 January 2014 at the age of 85.