Ex-President Ephraim Katzir Dies
Ephraim Katzir immigrated to Palestine with his family at the age of 9. He goes on to serve as Chief Scientist of the Israel Defense Forces and later as President of Israel.
Zalman Shazar Is Elected as Israel’s Third President
Shazar, a drafter of Israeli’s declaration of Independence who had helped Jews make Aliyah from Russia in the 1920s, becomes Israel’s third President.
Yitzhak Ben-Zvi Is Inaugurated as Israel’s Second President
At the end of the traditional thirty-day mourning period for Israel’s first President Chaim Weizmann, Yitzhak Ben-Zvi is inaugurated as Israel’s second President in a Knesset ceremony.
First President Chaim Weizmann Dies
Chaim Weizmann, a leader of the Zionist movement and the first president of the State of Israel, dies in Rehovot after a yearlong illness.
El Al Is Founded
El Al, Israel’s national airline, is officially incorporated about seven weeks after a repainted military plane used the name while bringing Chaim Weizmann home for Switzerland.
Shimon Peres Is Born
The only politician in Israeli history to hold the positions of both President and Prime Minister, Shimon Peres is born in Belorussia to Yitzchak and Sara Perski.
Chaim Weizmann Joins British Admiralty
Chaim Weizmann, first President of Israel, then working as a chemist in Manchester, England, is appointed to the British Admiralty as an Honorary Technical Adviser on acetone supplies.
