Shai, a Labor Party member who served in the Knesset from 2009 to 2019, became the Diaspora affairs minister under Naftali Bennett in 2021. He was the IDF’s chief spokesman during the 1991 Persian Gulf War and was involved in media affairs for Israel’s embassy in Washington and its U.N. delegation. He oversaw radio and TV organizations, wrote books, and taught at Emory and Duke universities.
Photo: Michael Jacobs, Center for Israel Education