Israeli Women Leaders

Born in present-day Ukraine and brought up in the United States, the phenomenal rise of Golda Meir to become the prime minister of Israel was driven by her sheer leadership qualities. She steered her country amid hostilities from its neighbourhood during her eventful term as premier which also saw the Yom Kippur War. She is remembered as a strong-willed woman.

Deborah was an Israeli prophetess and a judge of Israel who made her judgments underneath a date palm tree between Bethel in the Tribe of Ephraim and Ramah in Benjamin. According to the Bible, Deborah was the only female judge in pre-monarchic Israel.

The mother of Jesus Christ and the wife of Joseph, Mary, also known as the Virgin Mary, finds mention in both the New Testament and the Quran. Though most Catholic scholars believe in traditional Marian dogmas, Protestants have often argued, questioning ideas such as the Assumption of Mary.

Haneen Zoabi is an Israeli Arab politician. She is credited with co-founding a non-governmental organization called I'lam – Media Center for Arab Palestinians in Israel. She served as the general director of the NGO before resigning to concentrate on her political career.

Mathilde Krim was an Israeli medical researcher best known for her association with amfAR, an international nonprofit organization that aims at supporting AIDS research; she was the founding chairman of the organization. For her immense contribution to the field of AIDS research, Mathilde Krim was honored with the prestigious Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2000.

Zivia Lubetkin was a Holocaust survivor and leader of the Jewish resistance under Nazi rule in Warsaw. Lubetkin was one of the leaders of the Jewish Combat Organization, the only woman to hold a leadership position within the group. The Jewish Combat Organization played a key role in launching the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.