Ehud Olmert

Ehud Olmert
Official portrait, 2006
Ehud Olmert
Born	30 9, 1945
Birthplace	Binyamina, Mandatory Palestine
Nationality	Israeli
Occupation	Politician, lawyer
Known for	Prime Minister of Israel (2006–2009), Mayor of Jerusalem (1993–2003)
Spouse(s)	Aliza Olmert
Children	4

Ehud Olmert (Template:Lang-he; born 30 September 1945) is an Israeli politician and lawyer who served as the 12th Prime Minister of Israel from April 2006 to March 2009. A figure whose political career spanned more than three decades, Olmert rose from a young Knesset backbencher to the highest office in Israeli government, navigating some of the most consequential and contentious episodes in the country's modern history. He first entered the Knesset in 1973 as a member of Likud at the age of 28, held multiple ministerial portfolios, and served two terms as Mayor of Jerusalem before ascending to the premiership following the incapacitation of Ariel Sharon in January 2006. His tenure as prime minister was defined by the 2006 Lebanon War, extensive peace negotiations with the Palestinians, and a corruption scandal that ultimately forced his resignation. After leaving office, Olmert was convicted of bribery and obstruction of justice and served a prison sentence before being released on parole in 2017. In the years following his release, he has remained a prominent public commentator, particularly regarding Israeli policy toward the Palestinians and the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

Early Life

Ehud Olmert was born on 30 September 1945 in Binyamina, a small town in what was then Mandatory Palestine. He was the son of Mordechai Olmert, who became a member of the Knesset for the Herut party, a right-wing political movement that was a precursor to Likud. Growing up in a politically active household, Olmert was exposed to the ideological currents of the Israeli right from an early age, and his father's involvement in national politics provided a formative backdrop for his own career.

Olmert trained as a lawyer and established a legal practice before entering politics. His legal background would serve him throughout his career, both in his capacity as a legislator and, later, in the courtroom proceedings that marked the end of his political life. Details regarding his university education are consistent with his career as a practicing attorney in Israel, though the precise institution and dates of his legal studies are not fully specified in available English-language sources.

By the early 1970s, Olmert had made the transition from law to politics. In 1973, at the age of 28, he was elected to the Knesset as a representative of the Likud party, making him one of the youngest members of parliament at the time. His election marked the beginning of a political career that would span more than three decades and see him hold a succession of increasingly prominent positions in Israeli government.

Career

Early Knesset Career and Ministerial Positions

Olmert served continuously in the Knesset as a Likud member beginning in 1973. Over the course of the late 1970s and 1980s, he established himself within the party and gained experience in legislative affairs. In 1988, he was appointed as a minister without portfolio, a position he held until 1990. He was subsequently appointed Minister of Health, serving in that capacity from 1990 until 1992. These ministerial roles gave Olmert a foothold in the executive branch and increased his profile within the Likud hierarchy.

Mayor of Jerusalem

In 1993, Olmert was elected Mayor of Jerusalem, defeating the long-serving incumbent Teddy Kollek, who had held the position since 1965. The victory was a significant milestone in Olmert's career, placing him at the helm of one of the most politically sensitive cities in the world. As mayor, Olmert oversaw the administration of a city divided by religious, ethnic, and national tensions, and he became a prominent figure in debates over the status of Jerusalem in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Olmert served two consecutive five-year terms as mayor, remaining in the position until 2003. His tenure was marked by efforts to expand Israeli control over contested areas of the city, including support for settlement construction in East Jerusalem. These policies drew both praise from Israeli nationalists and criticism from Palestinian leaders and the international community. His successor as mayor was Uri Lupolianski.

Return to National Politics

In 2003, Olmert left the Jerusalem mayor's office to return to national politics, accepting positions within the government of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. He was appointed Deputy Prime Minister and also served as Minister of Industry, Trade and Labor and as Minister of Communications. In this capacity, Olmert became one of the most senior figures in the Sharon government and was closely involved in shaping economic and communications policy.

Following the resignation of Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in 2005—who stepped down in protest over the planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip—Olmert assumed the role of acting Minister of Finance, adding further weight to his governmental portfolio.

Formation of Kadima

In late 2005, Prime Minister Sharon announced his departure from Likud to form a new centrist party, Kadima. Olmert joined Sharon in this move, leaving Likud alongside several other prominent politicians from both Likud and the Labor Party. The formation of Kadima represented a major realignment in Israeli politics, as Sharon sought to create a party that could pursue a centrist agenda, including further territorial disengagement from Palestinian areas, without the ideological constraints of Likud's right wing.

Premiership

Accession to Power

On 4 January 2006, Prime Minister Sharon suffered a severe stroke that left him permanently incapacitated. Under Israeli law, Olmert, as the designated acting prime minister, assumed the duties of the office. Olmert subsequently became the leader of Kadima and led the party into general elections held in March 2006. Kadima won the most seats in the Knesset, and Olmert formed a coalition government, officially becoming Prime Minister on 14 April 2006. Tzipi Livni served as his deputy prime minister. During his term, Moshe Katsav and then Shimon Peres served as President of Israel.

2006 Lebanon War

The defining military event of Olmert's premiership was the 2006 Lebanon War, which erupted in July 2006 after Hezbollah militants kidnapped two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border raid. Olmert authorized a large-scale military response, including an extensive aerial bombing campaign and a ground incursion into southern Lebanon. The war lasted approximately 34 days and ended inconclusively, with a United Nations-brokered ceasefire taking effect in August 2006.

The war proved deeply damaging to Olmert's political standing. Public approval of his handling of the conflict dropped sharply, and he faced sustained criticism for perceived failures in military planning and execution. The Israeli government established the Winograd Commission to investigate the conduct of the war. The commission's interim report, released in 2007, and its final report harshly criticized Olmert's decision-making, finding significant failures in both political and military leadership during the conflict. The commission's findings prompted large-scale protests in Israel calling for Olmert's resignation.

Peace Negotiations

Despite the political damage from the Lebanon War, Olmert pursued extensive peace negotiations with the Palestinian Authority. He participated in the 2007 Annapolis Conference, a summit organized by the United States that brought together Israeli and Palestinian leaders in an effort to restart final-status negotiations. Olmert reportedly offered far-reaching concessions during the negotiations, including proposals related to the borders of a future Palestinian state and arrangements for Jerusalem.

The peace process, however, ultimately stalled and collapsed. The outbreak of hostilities between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip in late 2008 and early 2009—known as Operation Cast Lead or the Gaza War—effectively ended the negotiations. Olmert authorized the military operation in Gaza in the final months of his premiership, a decision that has continued to draw scrutiny and legal challenges in subsequent years.

Corruption Scandal and Resignation

Throughout the latter portion of his premiership, Olmert faced mounting allegations of corruption. Multiple investigations were opened into his financial dealings, including allegations of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust related to his time as Mayor of Jerusalem and as Minister of Industry, Trade and Labor. The investigations severely eroded his political position, and his approval ratings declined substantially.

In September 2008, facing the corruption probe and diminishing political support, Olmert announced his resignation as leader of Kadima and as prime minister. He remained in office in a caretaker capacity until March 2009, when Benjamin Netanyahu, leader of Likud, formed a new government and succeeded him as prime minister.

Criminal Conviction and Imprisonment

After leaving office, Olmert stood trial on multiple corruption charges. In 2014, he was convicted of accepting bribes in connection with the Holyland Park real estate scandal in Jerusalem, as well as obstruction of justice. He was sentenced to six years in prison, making him the first former Israeli prime minister to be imprisoned. The conviction related to bribes he had received while serving as mayor of Jerusalem and as trade minister, in exchange for advancing the Holyland Park construction project.

Olmert began serving his prison sentence and was released on parole in July 2017, having served a portion of his term. His conviction and imprisonment marked a dramatic fall from the pinnacle of Israeli political life and became a significant chapter in the broader narrative of corruption in Israeli public office.

Post-Political Career and Public Commentary

Following his release from prison, Olmert has remained an active and often outspoken commentator on Israeli politics and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In the years since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war in October 2023, Olmert has emerged as one of the most prominent Israeli critics of the Israeli government's military operations in Gaza.

In June 2025, Olmert stated in an interview with PBS that he believed Israel was committing war crimes in its ongoing offensive in Gaza, one of the strongest such condemnations to come from a former Israeli leader. In a subsequent interview with The New Yorker, he discussed how his views on the conflict in Gaza had shifted over time. He also appeared on The Ezra Klein Show at The New York Times in June 2025, where he stated that Israel's war in Gaza could no longer be justified.

In July 2025, Olmert criticized Israeli plans for a so-called "humanitarian city" in Gaza, telling The Guardian that forcing Palestinians into such a camp would constitute ethnic cleansing and describing the proposed facility as a "concentration camp." He also stated that anger directed at Israel internationally was not entirely attributable to antisemitism.

In November 2025, in an interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour, Olmert addressed settler violence in the West Bank, stating that "those who can burn the olive groves of Palestinians can burn everything." He further accused the Israeli government of backing settler violence, describing settlers carrying out attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank as "Jewish terrorists" supported by government officials and police.

In February 2026, Olmert described Israeli policy in the West Bank as "close to ethnic cleansing," a statement reported by Euronews as coinciding with the Israeli government's announcement of further plans for the territory.

Separately, in November 2025, the Hind Rajab Foundation filed a war crimes complaint in Germany against Olmert in connection with Operation Cast Lead, the 2008–2009 military operation in Gaza that occurred during his premiership.

Personal Life

Olmert is married to Aliza Olmert, an artist and writer. The couple has four children, including Shaul Olmert and Dana Olmert. Aliza Olmert has been publicly known for holding political views that differ from those her husband espoused during much of his career, particularly on issues related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with reports noting her involvement in left-leaning political and artistic circles.

Olmert's personal life has been the subject of extensive media scrutiny, particularly during and after his corruption trials. His imprisonment from 2016 to 2017 was widely covered in Israeli and international media, and his release on parole in July 2017 marked his return to public life after a period of incarceration.

Recognition

Olmert's political career earned him both recognition and controversy. As the youngest member of the Knesset at the time of his first election in 1973, he was noted for his early entry into national politics. His election as Mayor of Jerusalem in 1993, defeating the long-serving Teddy Kollek, was considered a landmark political achievement.

However, Olmert's legacy has been significantly shaped by his criminal conviction. His sentencing in 2014 made him the first former prime minister of Israel to be sentenced to prison, a fact that received extensive coverage in Israeli and international media. The Winograd Commission's criticism of his handling of the 2006 Lebanon War also contributed to a mixed assessment of his time in office.

In the post-October 2023 period, Olmert's public commentary criticizing Israeli military operations in Gaza and settler violence in the West Bank has attracted significant international attention, with interviews and profiles appearing in outlets including The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Guardian, PBS, and CNN.

Legacy

Olmert's legacy in Israeli political history is complex and contested. He is remembered as a politician who evolved ideologically over his career—moving from the right-wing Likud through the centrist Kadima and, in his post-political commentary, articulating positions sharply critical of Israeli government policy toward Palestinians. His willingness to pursue peace negotiations with the Palestinian Authority, including the proposals he advanced at the Annapolis Conference, has been cited by some analysts as representing one of the most substantive Israeli offers for a final-status agreement, though the process ultimately failed to produce results.

The 2006 Lebanon War and its aftermath remain central to assessments of his premiership. The Winograd Commission's findings established a critical narrative about the political and military decision-making during the conflict, and the war's inconclusive outcome contributed to public disillusionment with Olmert's leadership.

His criminal conviction for bribery and obstruction of justice has cast a long shadow over his political achievements. As the first former Israeli prime minister to serve a prison sentence, his case became emblematic of broader concerns about corruption in Israeli public life and set precedents for accountability at the highest levels of government.

In the 2020s, Olmert's vocal opposition to Israeli military operations in Gaza and his descriptions of West Bank policy as approaching "ethnic cleansing" have positioned him as an unusual figure in Israeli political discourse—a former prime minister willing to publicly accuse his own country's government of committing war crimes. Whether this post-political activism will reshape assessments of his legacy remains a subject of ongoing discussion.