Nava Barak-Singer ( he, נאוה ברק-זינגר; ''née'' Cohen; April 8, 1947) is an Israeli educator and social activist. She was the wife of

Ehud Barak Ehud Barak ( he-a, אֵהוּד בָּרָק, Ehud_barak.ogg, link=yes, born Ehud Brog; 12 February 1942) is an Israeli general and politician who served as the tenth prime minister from 1999 to 2001. He was leader of the Labor Party until Jan ...

between 1969 and 2003 and thus the spouse of the prime minister of Israel between 1999 and 2001.

Biography

Nava Cohen was born in

Tiberias Tiberias ( ; he, טְבֶרְיָה, ; ar, طبريا, Ṭabariyyā) is an Israeli city on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. A major Jewish center during Late Antiquity, it has been considered since the 16th century one of Judaism's Fo ...

. Her father was the manager of a branch of

Bank Leumi Bank Leumi ( he, בנק לאומי, lit. ''National Bank''; ar, بنك لئومي) is an Israeli bank. It was founded on February 27, 1902, in Jaffa as the ''Anglo Palestine Company'' as subsidiary of the Jewish Colonial Trust (Jüdische Kolonia ...

and her mother worked for the

Jewish Agency The Jewish Agency for Israel ( he, הסוכנות היהודית לארץ ישראל, translit=HaSochnut HaYehudit L'Eretz Yisra'el) formerly known as The Jewish Agency for Palestine, is the largest Jewish non-profit organization in the world. ...

. She served in the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...

as a member of the Intelligence Corps.אילן בן עמי, האישה שאיתו, 2010, עמ' 227 In the winter of 1968, while studying English and Arabic literature at the

Hebrew University The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; he, הַאוּנִיבֶרְסִיטָה הַעִבְרִית בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם) is a public research university based in Jerusalem, Israel. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Dr. Chaim Weiz ...

, she met her future husband, Ehud Brug, later Barak, in one of the university's libraries; Brug, a major in the IDF, was a student of mathematics and physics. After graduating with a BA, she obtained a position as an English teacher at a middle school in

Kfar Saba Kfar Saba ( he, כְּפַר סָבָא), officially Kefar Sava, is a city in the Sharon region, of the Central District of Israel. In 2019 it had a population of 110,456, making it the 16th-largest city in Israel. The population of Kfar Saba i ...

. The wedding of Nava Cohen and Ehud Barak took place on March 25, 1969 at the Ginaton Hotel in Tiberias. The newlyweds made their first home in

Kiryat Hayovel Kiryat HaYovel ( he, קריית היובל) is a neighborhood in southwestern Jerusalem on Mount Herzl. It was built in the early 1950s to house new immigrants. Today, Kiryat HaYovel has a population of 25,000 residents. Kiryat HaYovel is located ...

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

.אילן בן עמי, האישה שאיתו, 2010, עמ' 228

Spouse of the prime minister of Israel

During Ehud Barak's time as Israeli Prime Minister (1999–2001), Nava Barak chose not to hold any official public role, instead undertaking voluntary work in the youth sector. The organizations in which she served included the Elem Association for Youth at Risk; the network of Hafuch al Hafuch cafes that gave young people opportunities to meet professionals; a project supporting the teaching of healthy interpersonal relationships in schools; and the Supervision Patrol Project, which aimed to identify young people whose behaviour on the streets gave cause for concern. Other organizations that she helped were the Israel Cancer Association, the Israel AIDS Task force, the

Tel Hashomer Hospital Chaim Sheba Medical Center at Tel HaShomer ( he, המרכז הרפואי ע"ש חיים שיבא – תל השומר), also Tel HaShomer Hospital, is the largest hospital in Israel, located in the Tel Aviv District city of Ramat Gan at Tel HaShome ...

, the

Rabin Medical Center Rabin Medical Center ( he, מרכז רפואי רבין) is a major hospital and medical center located in Petah Tikva, Israel. It is owned and operated by Clalit Health Services, Israel's largest health maintenance organization. In January 1996, B ...

and the Association for Children with

Down Syndrome Down syndrome or Down's syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is usually associated with physical growth delays, mild to moderate intellectual dis ...

. Following an attack on a children's bus in

Kfar Darom Kfar Darom ( he, כְּפַר דָּרוֹם, ''lit.'' South Village), was a kibbutz and an Israeli settlement within the Gush Katif bloc in the Gaza Strip. History Kfar Darom was founded on 250 dunams of land (about 25 hectares or 60 acres) pu ...

, she raised money for a fund that had been created to help the injured.

Private life

The Baraks had three daughters. In 2003, after 34 years of marriage, they separated. On July 7, 2009, Nava Barak married the businessman Shalom Singer. Barak-Singer is currently employed as the president of the Elem Association and serves as the (unpaid) president of the Friends of the Rabin Medical Center Association.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barak, Nava Spouses of prime ministers of Israel Hebrew University of Jerusalem alumni Teachers of English as a second or foreign language Israeli activists Non-profit executives People from Tiberias Jews in Mandatory Palestine 1947 births Living people