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Yuli-Yoel Edelstein ( he, יוּלִי־יוֹאֵל אֵדֶלְשְטֵיין, russian: Ю́лий Ю́рьевич Эдельште́йн, link=no, uk, Ю́лій Ю́рійович Едельште́йн, born 5 August 1958) is an Israeli politician who served as Minister of Health from 2020 to 2021. One of the most prominent
refuseniks Refusenik (russian: отказник, otkaznik, ; alternatively spelt refusnik) was an unofficial term for individuals—typically, but not exclusively, Soviet Jews—who were denied permission to emigrate, primarily to Israel, by the authori ...
in the Soviet Union, he was the 16th
Speaker of the Knesset The Speaker of the Knesset ( he, יוֹשֵׁב רֹאשׁ הכנסת, Yoshev Rosh HaKnesset, Chairman of the Knesset) is the presiding officer of the Knesset, the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of Israel. The Speaker also acts as Presiden ...
from 2013 until his resignation on 25 March 2020.


Early life

Yuli Edelstein was born in
Chernivtsi Chernivtsi ( uk, Чернівці́}, ; ro, Cernăuți, ; see also other names) is a city in the historical region of Bukovina, which is now divided along the borders of Romania and Ukraine, including this city, which is situated on the upp ...
in the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
(now
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
) to a Jewish family. His mother, Anita Edelstein, was Jewish, while his father, Yuri Edelstein, is the son of a Jewish father and Christian mother. Both converted to Christianity, and Yuri is now a
Russian Orthodox Russian Orthodoxy (russian: Русское православие) is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, whose liturgy is or was traditionally conducted in Church Slavonic language. Most ...
priest in Karabanovo of
Kostroma Oblast Kostroma Oblast (russian: Костромска́я о́бласть, ''Kostromskaya oblast'') is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the city of Kostroma and its population as of the 2021 Census is 580,97 ...
named Father Georgy. While his parents taught at universities in the countryside, Edelstein was raised by his maternal grandparents. His grandfather had taught himself
Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
at the age of 70 and used to listen to the
Voice of Israel Voice of Israel was a Jerusalem-based private global broadcast network staffed by media professionals with a Zionist and often religious orientation, who saw their mission in pro-Israel advocacy (''hasbara'') and combating the global pro-Palesti ...
on a shortwave radio. When Edelstein's grandfather died, Yuli began to study Hebrew and read books such as ''
Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Ex ...
'' by
Leon Uris Leon Marcus Uris (August 3, 1924 – June 21, 2003) was an American author of historical fiction who wrote many bestselling books including ''Exodus'' (published in 1958) and ''Trinity'' (published in 1976). Life and career Uris was born in Bal ...
. In 1977, during his second year of university, Edelstein applied for an exit visa to
emigrate Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...
to Israel. Turned down, he began to associate with a small group of Hebrew teachers who held classes in their apartments. One of Edelstein's students was
refusenik Refusenik (russian: отказник, otkaznik, ; alternatively spelt refusnik) was an unofficial term for individuals—typically, but not exclusively, Soviet Jews—who were denied permission to emigrate, primarily to Israel, by the authori ...
Alexander Smukler Alexander Smukler (born 1960) is the chairman of the board of Agroterminal LTD and the chairman of the board of Century 21: Russia, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine. He is a former managing partner of Ariel Investment Group, which develops commercial ent ...
. In 1979, alongside Ephraim Kholmianski and Yuri Koroshovsky, Edelstein founded an underground organization, known as the 'City Project', with the intent of training Hebrew teachers and distributing Hebrew learning materials. That year, he was expelled from university and suffered harassment by the
KGB The KGB (russian: links=no, lit=Committee for State Security, Комитет государственной безопасности (КГБ), a=ru-KGB.ogg, p=kəmʲɪˈtʲet ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əj bʲɪzɐˈpasnəsʲtʲɪ, Komitet gosud ...
and local police. During this time, he found odd jobs as a street cleaner, security guard, and more. In 1984, he and other Hebrew teachers were arrested on fabricated charges, Edelstein himself being charged with possession of drugs, and sentenced to three years. He was then sent to
Siberian Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive region, geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a ...
penal colonies and did hard labor, first in
Buryatia Buryatia, officially the Republic of Buryatia (russian: Республика Бурятия, r=Respublika Buryatiya, p=rʲɪsˈpublʲɪkə bʊˈrʲætʲɪjə; bua, Буряад Улас, Buryaad Ulas, , mn, Буриад Улс, Buriad Uls), is ...
and then in
Novosibirsk Novosibirsk (, also ; rus, Новосиби́рск, p=nəvəsʲɪˈbʲirsk, a=ru-Новосибирск.ogg) is the largest city and administrative centre of Novosibirsk Oblast and Siberian Federal District in Russia. As of the Russian Census ...
. He broke several bones after falling from a construction tower. He was due to be transferred back to Buryatia, but his wife, Tanya, threatened to go on
hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke a feeling of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most ...
if he was returned there. Edelstein was released in May 1987, on the eve of
Israeli Independence Day Independence Day ( he, יום העצמאות ''Yom Ha'atzmaut'', lit. "Day of Independence") is the national day of Israel, commemorating the Israeli Declaration of Independence in 1948. The day is marked by official and unofficial ceremonies ...
, the next to last of the
refuseniks Refusenik (russian: отказник, otkaznik, ; alternatively spelt refusnik) was an unofficial term for individuals—typically, but not exclusively, Soviet Jews—who were denied permission to emigrate, primarily to Israel, by the authori ...
to be freed. He then
emigrated to Israel Aliyah (, ; he, עֲלִיָּה ''ʿălīyyā'', ) is the immigration of Jews from Jewish diaspora, the diaspora to, historically, the geographical Land of Israel, which is in the modern era chiefly represented by the Israel, State of Israel ...
, moving to the
West Bank The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
settlement of
Alon Shvut Alon Shvut ( he, אַלּוֹן שְׁבוּת) is an Israeli settlement located southwest of Jerusalem, one kilometer northeast of Kfar Etzion, in the West Bank. Established in June 1970 in the heart of the Etzion bloc, Alon Shvut became the ...
. He did his national service 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 ...
, attaining the rank of
Corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non ...
.


Political career


Early career

Initially a member of the
National Religious Party The National Religious Party ( he, מִפְלָגָה דָּתִית לְאֻומִּית, ''Miflaga Datit Leumit'', commonly known in Israel by its Hebrew acronym Mafdal, ) was a political party in Israel representing the religious Zionist moveme ...
and a vice-president of the Zionist Forum, Edelstein founded the
Yisrael BaAliyah Yisrael BaAliyah ( he, ישראל בעלייה, ; lit., ''Israel on the up'') was a political party in Israel between its formation in 1996 and its merger into Likud in 2003. It was formed to represent the interests of Russian immigrants by forme ...
party together with fellow Soviet dissident
Natan Sharansky Natan Sharansky ( he, נתן שרנסקי; russian: Ната́н Щара́нский; uk, Натан Щаранський, born Anatoly Borisovich Shcharansky on 20 January 1948); uk, Анатолій Борисович Щаранський, ...
. He was elected to the Knesset in
1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
, and was appointed Minister of Immigrant Absorption in
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 ...
's
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 Sharon ...
-led
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
. The long-term project of subsidizing housing for elderly migrants prepared by the ministry under his supervision and cooperation with the Ministry of Construction raised controversy over expenditures overrun incurred by the project. Edelstein claimed that the investigative commission found such claims unsubstantiated. He was re-elected in
1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...
, and was appointed Deputy Immigrant Absorption Minister by
Ariel Sharon Ariel Sharon (; ; ; also known by his diminutive Arik, , born Ariel Scheinermann, ; 26 February 1928 – 11 January 2014) was an Israeli general and politician who served as the 11th Prime Minister of Israel from March 2001 until April 2006. S ...
in 2001. He retained his seat in the 2003 elections, shortly after which Yisrael BaAliyah merged into Likud. Although Edelstein lost his seat in the 2006 elections, in which Likud was reduced to 12 seats (Edelstein was 14th on the party's list), he re-entered the Knesset as a replacement for
Dan Naveh Dan Naveh ( he, דן נוה, born 21 June 1960) is an Israeli businessman and former politician. He served as a member of the Knesset for Likud between 1999 and 2007 and as a government minister from 2001 until 2006. He is the founder and the man ...
in February 2007. He retained his seat in the
2009 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2009. * Electoral calendar 2009 * 2009 United Nations Security Council election Caribbean * 2009 Antiguan general election * 2009 Aruban general election * 2009 Caymanian constitutional referendu ...
after being placed twelfth on the party's list, and was appointed Minister of Information and Diaspora in the Netanyahu government. He was subsequently re-elected in
2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
after being placed on the eighteenth spot of the
Likud Yisrael Beiteinu Likud Yisrael Beiteinu ( he, הליכוד ישראל ביתנו; often referred by the Israeli media as Likud Beiteinu, ) was an electoral alliance formed in 2012 by the center-right Likud and the right-wing Yisrael Beiteinu to contest the Januar ...
list.


Speaker of the Knesset

Following the 2013 elections, Edelstein was nominated by Likud Yisrael Beitenu to replace then
Speaker of the Knesset The Speaker of the Knesset ( he, יוֹשֵׁב רֹאשׁ הכנסת, Yoshev Rosh HaKnesset, Chairman of the Knesset) is the presiding officer of the Knesset, the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of Israel. The Speaker also acts as Presiden ...
Reuven Rivlin Reuven "Ruvi" Rivlin ( he, רְאוּבֵן "רוּבִי" רִיבְלִין ; born 9 September 1939) is an Israeli politician and lawyer who served as the tenth president of Israel between 2014 and 2021. He is a member of the Likud party. Riv ...
. His nomination was approved by all members of the party's parliamentary caucus excluding Rivlin, who chose to abstain. It was then approved by the Knesset, with 96 members voting in favor and 8 abstaining. Edelstein was sworn in as speaker on 14 March. Edelstein was elected to the third place on the Likud list ahead of the 2015 election. He was subsequently re-elected to the Knesset and then as Speaker, with 103 Members of the Knesset voting in favor and 7 abstaining. During his tenure as speaker, Edelstein supported the Nation-State Bill. Ahead of the April 2019 election, Edelstein was elected to the second place on the Likud list. After the election, he was re-elected as Speaker, with 101 MKs voting in favor and 4 abstaining. Following the 2020 election, a bloc led by Netanyahu and
Benny Gantz Benjamin Gantz ( he, בִּנְיָמִין "בֵּנִי" גַּנְץ, Transliterated: ; born 9 June 1959) is an Israeli politician and retired army general serving as the minister of Defense since 2020 and deputy prime minister of Israel si ...
agreed to replace Edelstein as speaker of the Knesset. Despite this he refused to convene the plenary to vote on his replacement. The
Movement for Quality Government in Israel The Movement for Quality Government in Israel ( he, התנועה למען איכות השלטון בישראל, ''HaTnu'a Lema'an Ekhut HaShilton BeYisrael'') is an Israeli non-profit organization that claims a membership of about 17,000. Formed ...
appealed to the
Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
, which ordered Edelstein to convene the Knesset. on 25 march, Edelstein resigned as speaker to prevent a constitutional crisis. On March 26, Gantz was elected and sworn in as the new Knesset Speaker.


After speakership

Following the establishment of the Thirty-fifth government, Edelstein was sworn in as
Minister of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental health. Coun ...
on 17 May 2020, and remained as minister until the Thirty-sixth government was sworn in on 13 June 2021. On 11 October, he announced his intention to challenge Netanyahu for the Leadership of the Likud in the next leadership election. Ahead of the 2022 election, he withdrew from the race, leading to its cancellation due to a lack of candidates. In primaries for the party list held in August, Edelstein was placed on the 18th place on the Likud list.


Statements

In December 2014, in an interview with ''
The Jerusalem Post ''The Jerusalem Post'' is a broadsheet newspaper based in Jerusalem, founded in 1932 during the British Mandate of Palestine by Gershon Agron as ''The Palestine Post''. In 1950, it changed its name to ''The Jerusalem Post''. In 2004, the paper w ...
'', Edelstein warned world leaders against creating a Palestinian state that he thought would go to war with Israel. In the same interview, Edelstein stated that he believes in Israeli-Palestinian coexistence. In 2014, he was one of several Members of the Knesset (MK) who submitted complaints against Arab-Israeli
Haneen Zoabi Haneen Zoabi ( ar, حنين زعبي, he, חנין זועבי; born 23 May 1969), is a Palestinian-Israeli politician. The first Arab woman to be elected to the legislature on an Arab party's list, she served as a member of the Knesset for t ...
for supporting Hamas, which led to her six-month suspension. "I have been in the Knesset for almost 19 years," Edelstein said. "I remember Arab MKs joining me at the March of the Living and proposing social-oriented legislation with me. That is definitely not Zoabi. I believe in coexistence and fighting against those who harm it and I think that Zoabi’s words and actions hurt coexistence. People hear her and think all Arabs must hate us and want to kill us. That is unhealthy, and we have to put an end to it.” Edelstein criticized U.S. presidential candidate
Bernie Sanders Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Vermont since 2007. He was the U.S. representative for the state's at-large congressional district from 1991 to 2007 ...
for saying that U.S. military aid to Israel should instead be diverted toward aid to Palestinians in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip. Edelstein said that Sanders should 'stop talking nonsense'.


Personal life

After leaving Alon Shvut, Edelstein moved to
Neve Daniel Neve Daniel ( he, נְוֵה דָּנִיֵּאל) is an Israeli settlement in the West Bank. Located in western Gush Etzion south of Jerusalem and just west of Bethlehem, it sits atop one of the highest points in the area - close to 1,000 meter ...
, another settlement in the West Bank. He was married to Tatiana (Tanya) Edelstein, who was a Zionist activist, for 33 years. They met in the Soviet Union when she attended a Hebrew class he was teaching. After immigrating to Israel, she worked as a civil engineer at the
Civil Aviation Authority A civil aviation authority (CAA) is a national or supranational statutory authority that oversees the regulation of civil aviation, including the maintenance of an aircraft register. Role Due to the inherent dangers in the use of flight vehicles, ...
. Tanya and Yuli Edelstein had two children together. In 2014, Tanya died of cancer at the age of 63. In June 2016, Edelstein married
Irina Nevzlin Irina Nevzlin ( he, אירינה נבזלין) is an Israeli entrepreneur and an author. As of August 2012, she serves as the chair of the Board of Directors of ANU - Museum of the Jewish People , President of the NADAV Foundation and the Founder ...
, chair of the board of directors of The
Museum of the Jewish People at Beit Hatfutsot ANU - Museum of the Jewish People, formerly the Nahum Goldmann Museum of the Jewish Diaspora, is located in Tel Aviv, Israel, at the center of the Tel Aviv University campus in Ramat Aviv. ANU - Museum of the Jewish People is an institution ...
and President of the NADAV Foundation.


References


External links

*
Yuli Edelstein – Web Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Edelstein, Yuli-Yoel 1958 births Living people Bukovina Jews Deputy ministers of Israel Deputy Speakers of the Knesset Israeli people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent People from Alon Shvut Israeli settlers Jewish Israeli politicians Likud politicians Members of the 14th Knesset (1996–1999) Members of the 15th Knesset (1999–2003) Members of the 16th Knesset (2003–2006) Members of the 17th Knesset (2006–2009) 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 25th Knesset (2022–) Naturalized citizens of Israel People from Chernivtsi Refuseniks Speakers of the Knesset Soviet emigrants to Israel Soviet Jews Ukrainian emigrants to Israel Yisrael BaAliyah politicians Recipients of the Order of Skanderbeg (1990–) Members of the 23rd Knesset (2020–2021) Ministers of Health of Israel