Ronen Pinchas Hoffman (; born 19 July 1963) is an Israeli academic, politician and diplomat. He served as a member of the

Knesset The Knesset ( , ) is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of Israel. The Knesset passes all laws, elects the President of Israel, president and Prime Minister of Israel, prime minister, approves the Cabinet of Israel, cabinet, and supe ...

for

Yesh Atid Yesh Atid (, ) is a centrist political party in Israel. It was founded in 2012 by former TV journalist Yair Lapid, the son of the former Shinui party politician and Israeli Justice Minister Tommy Lapid. In 2013 the first election it conte ...

between 2013 and 2015 and was Ambassador to Canada from 2021 to 2023.

Biography

Hoffman was born into a farming family in

Afula Afula () is a city in the Northern District of Israel, often known as the "Capital of the Valley" due to its strategic location in the Jezreel Valley. As of , the city had a population of . Afula's ancient tell (settlement mound) suggests habit ...

,Meet Dr. Ronen Hoffman: Israel's new ambassador to Canada
Ottawa Jewish Bulletin, 10 January 2022 and grew up in the city.Meet the MK: Ronen Hoffman
The Jerusalem Post, 12 February 2013 After his

national service National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...

in the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...

he studied political science at

Tel Aviv University Tel Aviv University (TAU) is a Public university, public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Located in northwest Tel Aviv, the university is the center of teaching and ...

. He worked as an information officer in the Israeli consulate in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

and as a personal aide to

Yitzhak Rabin Yitzhak Rabin (; , ; 1 March 1922 – 4 November 1995) was an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the prime minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974–1977, and from 1992 until Assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, his ass ...

during the 1992 elections. He was then involved in co-ordinating the Israeli delegation for peace talks with

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

between 1992 and 1994. In 1996 Hoffman founded the

International Institute for Counter-Terrorism The International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT) is an Israeli think tank founded in 1996 and located at Reichman University, in Herzliya, Israel. Activities According to ''The Village Voice'', the ICT is a think tank developing public-poli ...

at the

Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya Reichman University () is Israel's only private university, located in Herzliya, Tel Aviv District. It was founded in 1994 as the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya (IDC Herzliya, ) private college, before being rebranded in 2021. It receives no ...

, and served as its CEO until the following year. In 1999 he completed his doctorate at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

, dealing with Syrian-Israeli Peace Negotiations from 1992 to 1995. After returning to Syrian peace negotiations under Prime Minister

Ehud Barak Ehud Barak ( ; born Ehud Brog; 12 February 1942) is an Israeli former general and politician who served as the Prime Minister of Israel, prime minister from 1999 to 2001. He was leader of the Israeli Labor Party, Labor Party between 1997 and 20 ...

, he then worked as a senior lecturer at the Institute focussing on governance, diplomacy, international relations and political psychology between 2001 and 2012.All the kingmaker’s men, and women
Times of Israel, 23 January 2013 He also worked as a policy advisor to the

Ministry of Defense A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divided ...

during 2001. In 2012 he joined the new

party and was placed nineteenth on the party's list for the

2013 Knesset elections Early legislative elections were held in Israel on 22 January 2013 to elect the 120 members of the nineteenth Knesset. Public debate over the Tal Law had nearly led to early elections in 2012, but they were aborted at the last moment after Kadi ...

. He entered the Knesset after the party won 19 seats, and sat on the

Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee The Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee () is a permanent Knesset committee which oversees key Foreign and Defense issues of the State of Israel, including the drafting of legislation, supervision over related government ministries and the ...

and chaired the subcommittee on Foreign Policy and Public Diplomacy. He was placed eighteenth on the Yesh Atid list for the

2015 elections Africa * 2015 Beninese parliamentary election 26 April 2015 * 2015 Burkinabé general election 29 November 2015 * 2015 Burundian legislative election 29 June 2015 * 2015 Burundian presidential election 21 July 2015 * 2015-16 Central African gene ...

, losing his seat as the party was reduced to 11 seats. In July 2021 Hoffman was appointed Ambassador to Canada. He took up the role in December 2021. On 21 January 2023 Hoffman announced his resignation as ambassador to Canada because his "personal and professional integrity has compelled imto request to shorten ispost and return to Israel this summer," and that his opposition to the Netanyahu government made it impossible for him to continue in his position. Hoffman lives in

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

with his partner, Michal Arad.Ambassador
Embassy of Israel in Canada He is divorced and has three children.Meet Ronen Hoffman, Israel’s new ambassador to Canada: a foreign policy expert and hockey dad
The Canadian Jewish News, 4 January 2022

References

External links

* 1963 births Living people People from Afula Tel Aviv University alumni Alumni of King's College London Israeli civil servants Israeli educators Academic staff of Reichman University Yesh Atid politicians Members of the 19th Knesset (2013–2015) Ambassadors of Israel to Canada {{Israel-diplomat-stub