Ram Ben-Barak

Ram Ben-Barak was born in 1958 in Nahalal

Ben-Barak was born in Nahalal in 1958, one of 4 children of Pnina and Menachem. His grandfather Aharon Ben-Barak was among the founders of Nahalal. His older brother Zohar was killed in the Yom Kippur War.

He joined the IDF in 1976 and served in Sayeret Matkal until 1981. He later graduated from the National Defense College and earned a master's degree at the University of Haifa in political science and national security.

He joined the Mossad in 1984. In 1991 he was arrested in Cyprus with 3 other agents during an operation at the Iranian embassy in Nicosia, and they were convicted of trespassing and fined. He headed the Keshet division from 2004 and was deputy head of the Mossad from 2009 to 2011.

In December 2014 he became director general of the Ministry of Intelligence, and later also of the Ministry of Strategic Affairs. He then held roles in private companies.

He joined Yesh Atid in 2018 and entered the Knesset in April 2019. From 2021 he chaired the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. In March 2024 he lost the party leadership primary to Yair Lapid. He is married with 3 children and lives in Nahalal.