Ronen Manelis

Ronen Manelis was born in 1979 in Jerusalem

Ronen Manelis was born in Jerusalem in January 1979 and grew up in Beit Shemesh. He attended the ORT college at Givat Ram, where he chaired the student council. He holds a B.A. in history from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and an M.A. in political science from Tel Aviv University.

He enlisted in the IDF in 1997 and served mainly in field intelligence and the Intelligence Directorate. He held intelligence posts in the Paratroopers, the Samaria Brigade, the Northern Command, the Gaza Division and the Depth Command. He headed the office of Gadi Eisenkot and then served as his assistant when Eisenkot was Chief of Staff.

In May 2017 he became IDF Spokesperson with the rank of brigadier general. He was replaced by Hidai Zilberman in September 2019. In March 2020 he joined the team managing the coronavirus crisis in Bnei Brak.

In June 2020 he was appointed director general of the Ministry of Strategic Affairs and resigned in December 2020. In March 2022 he joined the news division of Kan as a commentator and presenter. He later became chief strategist and campaign manager of Eisenkot's party, Yashar!.

In October 2023, during the Swords of Iron war, he served in the reserves assisting IDF Spokesperson Daniel Hagari. He is married with two children, lives in Mazkeret Batya and sits on its local council.