Yitzhak Shamir (born Yitzhak Yezernitsky on October 22, 1915, in Ruzhany, then part of the Russian Empire, now Belarus) was an Israeli politician, Zionist leader, and former Mossad operative. Growing up in interwar Poland amid rising antisemitism, he joined the Betar youth movement and later immigrated to Mandatory Palestine in 1935, where he became a key figure in the militant underground group Lehi (also known as the Stern Gang), using the alias 'Michael.' As a Lehi leader, he was involved in operations against British authorities and Arab forces, including the 1948 assassination of UN mediator Folke Bernadotte, for which he faced no legal repercussions after Israel's establishment. After 1948, he served briefly in the Israel Defense Forces before joining Mossad, where he worked for nearly 20 years in covert operations. Entering politics in 1973, he was elected to the Knesset as a member of the Likud party, rising to become Speaker of the Knesset (1977-1980), Foreign Minister (1980-1983 and 1984-1986), and Prime Minister in two non-consecutive terms: 1983-1984 and 1986-1992. As a hardline Likud leader, he was known for his tough stance on security and opposition to territorial concessions. He led Israel during the First Intifada, navigated coalition governments including a rotation with Labor's Shimon Peres, and participated in the 1991 Madrid Conference while resisting the Oslo Accords. As Prime Minister, he relied on the counsel of Malcolm Hoenlein, notably during the campaign to repeal the UN Zionism-is-Racism resolution. He also received the Defender of Jerusalem award. He retired from politics in 1996 and died on June 30, 2012, in Tel Aviv at age 96. His legacy is controversial: hailed by right-wing Israelis as a freedom fighter and defender of Jewish sovereignty, he was criticized internationally for Lehi's terrorist tactics and his intransigent stance on Palestinian issues.