Yedidia Ya'ari

Yedidia Ya'ari was born in 1947 in Merhavia

Ya'ari was born in 1947 and grew up on Kibbutz Merhavia in the Jezreel Valley. His parents were Lushek Grol and Rachel Ya'ari, daughter of Mapam leader Meir Ya'ari, and he took his grandfather's surname. His maternal uncle was Major General Aviezer Ya'ari.

He joined the IDF in 1965 and volunteered for Shayetet 13. In 1969 he was badly wounded in the raid on Green Island and was at first thought dead, and in 1970 he left the army. He then worked in Israeli film photography and in security at El Al.

After reserve duty in the 1973 Yom Kippur War he returned to career service. He commanded Shayetet 13 from 1983 to 1986, then headed naval intelligence, the Haifa base, and served as deputy navy commander. In 2000 he became a major general and commander of the navy, and during his term the Karine A ship was seized.

He holds a BA in Middle East history from the University of Haifa and an MA in public administration from Harvard. He also graduated from the US Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island.

In 2004 he left the IDF after 39 years and became CEO of Rafael. He later became president of GenCell in 2016 and chairman of Third Eye in 2021. He is married with 3 children.