Gila Gamliel (; born 24 February 1974) is an Israeli politician who currently serves as the
Minister of Intelligence and as a member of the
Knesset
The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (wit ...
for
Likud
Likud ( he, הַלִּיכּוּד, HaLikud, The Consolidation), officially known as Likud – National Liberal Movement, is a major centre-right to right-wing political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin and Ariel S ...
. She also previously served as
Minister for Social Equality and as
Minister of Environmental Protection.
Early life and education
Gamliel was born in
Gedera
Gedera, or less commonly known as Gdera ( he, גְּדֵרָה), is a town in the southern part of the Shfela region in the Central District of Israel founded in 1884. It is south of Rehovot.
In , it had a population of .
History
Gedera ...
, Israel. Her father Yosef Gameliel was born to a
Yemenite Jewish family, and her mother Aliza was born to a
Libyan Jewish family. Both her parents
immigrated to
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
. Gamliel studied at the
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, where she was awarded a BA in
Middle Eastern history
The Middle East, interchangeable with the Near East, is home to one of the Cradles of Civilization and has seen many of the world's oldest cultures and civilizations. The region's history started from the earliest human settlements and continue ...
and philosophy, and an MA in philosophy. During her time as a student, she was elected chairwoman of the university's student union. She was controversially re-elected to the post after her boyfriend, Sagiv Assulin, had removed members who opposed Gamliel's candidacy from the association's steering council.
[ She also served as the first woman chair of the National Students' Association, and later obtained a Bachelor of Laws at the ]Ono Academic College
Ono Academic College (''in Hebrew'': הקריה האקדמית אונו) is a private college located in Kiryat Ono, Israel. With over 14,000 students, the college is among Israel's fastest growing institutions of higher education. OAC"s stated ...
and a Master of Laws at the Bar-Ilan University
Bar-Ilan University (BIU, he, אוניברסיטת בר-אילן, ''Universitat Bar-Ilan'') is a public research university in the Tel Aviv District city of Ramat Gan, Israel. Established in 1955, Bar Ilan is Israel's second-largest academi ...
.
Career
For the 1999 elections, Gamliel was placed 25th on the Likud list, but missed out on a place in the Knesset when the party won only 19 seats. In 2003, she surprisingly won 11th place on the Likud list for the elections that year, ahead of several cabinet ministers. She became a Knesset member when the party won 38 seats, standing down as head of the Ben-Gurion University students' union, where she was replaced by Assulin. Following her election to the Knesset, police decided to open an investigation into the suspected transfer of student funds into a private company. She was also accused of blackmailing a fellow student council member in order to retain the chairmanship of the students' association of the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev at the time. Gamliel denied both accusations. In November 2003, the fraud police decided to stop the investigations against her because of the lack of enough evidence.
In June 2003, she and three other Likud MKs were banned from the Likud faction for three months after voting against government economic policy. During her first term in the Knesset, she chaired the committee on the Status of Women, and in March 2005 was appointed Deputy Minister of Agriculture.
Gamliel was placed on the 38th spot on the Likud list for the 2006 elections, and lost her seat. Prior to the 2009 elections, she won nineteenth place on the party's list, and returned to the Knesset, as Likud won 27 seats. On 1 April 2009, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu (; ; born 21 October 1949) is an Israeli politician who served as the ninth prime minister of Israel from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2009 to 2021. He is currently serving as Leader of the Opposition and Chairman of ...
appointed Gamliel as Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Office in his new government, with the portfolio of the Advancement of Young People, Students, and Women.
In the 2013 elections, she was re-elected to the Knesset, but lost her Deputy Ministerial post. She was also re-elected in the 2015 elections, after which she was appointed Minister for Senior Citizens in the new government (renamed Minister for Social Equality in August 2015).
On 17 May 2020, Gamliel took up a different cabinet post when she was sworn in as Minister of Environmental Protection, which she held until 2021. On 2 January 2023, Gamliel became the Minister of Intelligence.
Personal life
Whilst at Ben-Gurion University, Gamliel dated Sagiv Assulin, with whom she worked closely together in the students' association, with the couple becoming known as "Sagilon". Assulin was also on the Likud list for the 2009 elections, but in 35th place, and he failed to win a seat.[The young man, the ponytail and the Jewish Leadership faction]
Haaretz, December 11, 2008 Gamliel is now married, with two daughters, and lives in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
.
She has five elder siblings. Her father's family, the Gamliels, are a big family of Yemenite Jews
Yemenite Jews or Yemeni Jews or Teimanim (from ''Yehudei Teman''; ar, اليهود اليمنيون) are those Jews who live, or once lived, in Yemen, and their descendants maintaining their customs. Between June 1949 and September 1950, th ...
in Gila's birthplace, Gedera
Gedera, or less commonly known as Gdera ( he, גְּדֵרָה), is a town in the southern part of the Shfela region in the Central District of Israel founded in 1884. It is south of Rehovot.
In , it had a population of .
History
Gedera ...
. Her mother is a Libyan Jew, originating from Tripoli. Other family members of Gila are politicians as well: Her brother, Chaim, is/was chairman of Likud in Gedera; her brother, Yoel Gamliel, is mayor of Gedera; and another relative, Aryeh Gamliel
Aryeh Gamliel ( he, אריה גמליאל, 11 March 1951 – 6 August 2021) was an Israeli rabbi and politician who served as a member of the Knesset for Shas between 1988 and 2003.
Biography
Born in Beersheba, Gamliel was educated at a religi ...
, is a former member of the Knesset for Shas
Shas ( he, ש״ס) is a Haredi religious political party in Israel. Founded in 1984 under the leadership of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, a former Israeli Sephardi chief rabbi, who remained its spiritual leader until his death in October 2013, it primarily ...
.
On 3 October 2020, Gamliel tested positive for COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...
. Gamliel did not at first disclose to investigators from the Health Ministry that she traveled from her home in Tel Aviv to Tiberias for Yom Kippur during a national lockdown. She had instead told investigators from the Health Ministry that she caught COVID-19 from her driver. Upon the disclosure that Gamliel apparently violated the lockdown and was not forthcoming with health investigators, the Movement for Quality Government in Israel called for her to resign from the Knesset.
References
External links
*
Gila Gamliel, MK. Minister for Social Equality (Likud)
Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Politics: A woman with three hats
(interview), The Jerusalem Post, January 10, 2010
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gamliel, Gila
1974 births
Living people
Israeli Sephardi Jews
Bar-Ilan University alumni
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev alumni
Deputy ministers of Israel
Government ministers of Israel
Jewish Israeli politicians
Likud politicians
Israeli people of Libyan-Jewish descent
Israeli people of Yemeni-Jewish descent
Members of the 16th Knesset (2003–2006)
Members of the 18th Knesset (2009–2013)
Members of the 19th Knesset (2013–2015)
Members of the 20th Knesset (2015–2019)
Members of the 21st Knesset (2019)
Members of the 22nd Knesset (2019–2020)
Members of the 23rd Knesset (2020–2021)
Members of the 24th Knesset (2021–2022)
Members of the 25th Knesset (2022–)
Ono Academic College alumni
People from Gedera
Women members of the Knesset
21st-century Israeli women politicians
Women government ministers of Israel
Deputy Speakers of the Knesset
Ministers of Environment of Israel
Israeli Mizrahi Jews