orig. Shimon Perski
born Aug. 16, 1923, Wołożyn, Pol.
Polish-born Israeli statesman.
He immigrated to Palestine with his family in 1934 and joined the Haganah organization in 1947. After Israel achieved independence, he held a number of positions in the defense establishment (1948–65). In 1967 he helped establish the Israel Labour Party . The indecisive 1984 election led to a power-sharing arrangement with Likud candidate Yitzhak Shamir , with the two men alternating as prime minister. During Peres's tenure (1984–86) Israel withdrew from most of Lebanon (see Lebanese civil war ). He was foreign minister under Yitzhak Rabin (1992–95), with whom, along with Palestinian leader Yāsir Arafāt , he shared the 1994 Nobel Prize for Peace. Peres became prime minister upon Rabin's assassination but was narrowly defeated by Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu in 1996. Although Peres declined to seek reelection as leader of the Labour Party in 1997, he later served as foreign minister and deputy prime minister (2001–02) in the national unity government led by Likud's Ariel Sharon . In 2003 Peres resumed the chair of the Labour Party.