Mordechai Bentov (; 28 March 1900 – 18 January 1985) was an Israeli journalist and politician. He was one of the signatories of the

Israeli declaration of independence The Israeli Declaration of Independence, formally the Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel (), was proclaimed on 14 May 1948 (5 Iyar 5708), at the end of the 1947–1948 civil war in Mandatory Palestine, civil war phase and ...

Biography

Bentov was born Mordechai Gutgeld in

Grodzisk Mazowiecki Grodzisk Mazowiecki () is a town in central Poland, the capital of Grodzisk Mazowiecki County in the Masovian Voivodeship, with 34,718 inhabitants (2024). Grodzisk Mazowiecki is a town that developed from an Early Middle Ages, early medieval forti ...

in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

(now in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

). After attending a gymnasium he studied law for two years at the

University of Warsaw The University of Warsaw (, ) is a public university, public research university in Warsaw, Poland. Established on November 19, 1816, it is the largest institution of higher learning in the country, offering 37 different fields of study as well ...

, and was one of the founding members and leaders of

Hashomer Hatzair Hashomer Hatzair (, , 'The Young Guard') is a Labor Zionism, Labor Zionist, secular Jewish youth movement founded in 1913 in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, Austria-Hungary. It was also the name of the Hashomer Hatzair Workers Party, the ...

in Poland.Mordechai Bentov
Knesset He

emigrated Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine was a British Empire, British geopolitical entity that existed between 1920 and 1948 in the Palestine (region), region of Palestine, and after 1922, under the terms of the League of Nations's Mandate for Palestine. After ...

in 1920, and continued studying law in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

. He had a younger sister, Shulamit, who followed him to Palestine in 1923 and went on to become a director and producer of kibbutz theatre for Kibbutz

Mishmar HaEmek Mishmar HaEmek () is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located in the western Jezreel Valley, it falls under the jurisdiction of the Megiddo Regional Council. Mishmar HaEmek is one of the few kibbutzim that have not undergone privatization and stil ...

and other communal settlements. Bentov later said that he first encountered the "Arab-Jewish problem" during the events of 1921, saying "I was set up, armed with a gun, to defend a Jewish neighborhood in

Jaffa Jaffa (, ; , ), also called Japho, Joppa or Joppe in English, is an ancient Levantine Sea, Levantine port city which is part of Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel, located in its southern part. The city sits atop a naturally elevated outcrop on ...

. I saw in the distance a lot of Arab villagers with sticks and stones, marching to riot against the Jews. After them I saw women carrying sacks – to collect the loot." He was amongst the founders of

Kibbutz Artzi The Kibbutz Movement (, ''HaTnu'a HaKibbutzit'') is the largest settlement movement for kibbutzim in Israel. It was formed in 1999 by a partial merger of the United Kibbutz Movement and Kibbutz Artzi and is made up of approximately 230 kibbutzim. I ...

, and was a member of

kibbutz. By this time he had risen to the leadership of Hashomer Hatzair, and was one of its representatives in the

Histadrut Histadrut, fully the New General Workers' Federation () and until 1994 the General Federation of Labour in the Land of Israel (, ''HaHistadrut HaKlalit shel HaOvdim B'Eretz Yisrael''), is Israel's national trade union center and represents the m ...

and the

World Zionist Organization The World Zionist Organization (; ''HaHistadrut HaTzionit Ha'Olamit''), or WZO, is a non-governmental organization that promotes Zionism. It was founded as the Zionist Organization (ZO; 1897–1960) at the initiative of Theodor Herzl at the F ...

. He was also one of the

Jewish Agency The Jewish Agency for Israel (), formerly known as the Jewish Agency for Palestine, is the largest Jewish non-profit organization in the world. It was established in 1929 as the operative branch of the World Zionist Organization (WZO). As an ...

delegation to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

in 1947.

Political career

On 14 May 1948 Bentov was one of the 37 people to sign Israel's declaration of independence, and was appointed Minister of Labour and Construction in the

provisional government A provisional government, also called an interim government, an emergency government, a transitional government or provisional leadership, is a temporary government formed to manage a period of transition, often following state collapse, revoluti ...

. In 1949 he was elected to the first Knesset as a member of

Mapam File:Pre-State_Zionist_Workers'_Parties_chart.png, chart of zionist workers parties, 360px, right rect 167 83 445 250 Hapoel Hatzair rect 450 88 717 265 The non-partisans (pre-state Zionist political movement), Non Partisans rect 721 86 995 243 ...

. He was re-elected in 1951 and 1955, after which he was appointed Minister of Development, a post he held until 1961. Although he lost his seat in the 1965 elections, he was appointed Minister of Housing by

Levi Eshkol Levi Eshkol ( ;‎ 25 October 1895 – 26 February 1969), born Levi Yitzhak Shkolnik (), was the prime minister of Israel from 1963 until his death from a heart attack in 1969. A founder of the Israeli Labor Party, he served in numerous seni ...

, remaining in the position until 1969. He died at his home in Mishmar HaEmek on 18 January 1985 aged 84, and was buried on the kibbutz. His sister Shulamit died the following month and was also buried at Mishmar HaEmek.

Bibliography

*''Israel's Economy at a Crossroads'' (1962) (Hebrew) *''Israel, the Palestinians and the Left'' (1971) (Hebrew) *''Days Will Tell: Memories from the Decisive Period'' (1984) (Hebrew)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bentov, Mordechai 1900 births 1985 deaths People from Grodzisk Mazowiecki Jewish writers from the Russian Empire Jewish socialists Polish emigrants to Mandatory Palestine Hashomer Hatzair members Mapam politicians Members of the Assembly of Representatives (Mandatory Palestine) Signatories of the Israeli Declaration of Independence Members of the 1st Knesset (1949–1951) Members of the 2nd Knesset (1951–1955) Members of the 3rd Knesset (1955–1959) Members of the 4th Knesset (1959–1961) Members of the 5th Knesset (1961–1965) 20th-century Israeli journalists Ministers of development of Israel Ministers of housing of Israel Ministers of labour of Israel Immigrants of the Third Aliyah