Amir Tibon (Hebrew:אמיר תיבון; born 11 February 1989) is an Israeli journalist and writer.[1] He works forHaaretz,[2] but has also worked forWalla! News and as a diplomatic correspondent.[3][4]
Biography
Tibon's great-grandfather was a German soldier in World War I, and fled the country after the Nazis came to power.[5]
In the early 2000s, Amir Tibon was a resident ofTel Aviv.[4] Tibon and his wife (then fiancée), Miri, moved toKibbutzNahal Oz, following a journalistic visit in August 2014.[4][6] The couple has two daughters.[6]
On 7 October 2023, Nahal Oz wasattacked by Hamas militants while Tibon and his family were at home.[6] They remained in their house's safe room for ten hours until Tibon's father,Noam Tibon [he], a retired general, arrived from Tel Aviv, along with an Israeli soldier he picked up along the way.[6][7] On October 8, Tibon wrote about his experience stating "the Israeli state failed us".[8]
On 9 October 2023, Tibon criticized American senatorJosh Hawley for suggesting that American funding forUkraine be redirected to Israel.[9] Tibon considers himself a "left-leaning"Zionist.[10] He noted in October 2024 that "Although I supported the war at the beginning...I now prefer an agreement to bring back the hostages and end the conflict".[5]
As of September 2024, Tibon and his family are living in KibbutzMishmar HaEmek.[11]
In 2015, Tibon was one of 15 journalists who signed a letter criticizing a proposed policy that would preventIsrael Broadcasting Authority journalists from expressing their opinions on-air.[13] In 2016, Tibon wrote an article critical of Israeli prime ministerBenjamin Netanyahu forWalla.[14] ThePrime Minister's Office unsuccessfully pressured the site to remove Tibon's article.[14]
Tibon began working as a Washington correspondent forHaaretz in early 2017, the week of Donald Trump's inauguration.[15] He continued working as a Washington correspondent through 2020.[16][17][18]
Tibon co-authored a biography ofMahmoud Abbas, entitledThe Last Palestinian: The Rise and Reign of Mahmoud Abbas, which was published in 2017.[6][19][20]
In 2024, Tibon publishedThe Gates of Gaza: A Story of Betrayal, Survival and Hope on Israel’s Borderlands, a non-fiction book about the October 7 attack on Nahal Oz and the events leading up to it.[21][22][10][23]
Awards and recognition
In January 2015, Tibon and fellow journalist Ben Birnbaum were nominated for aNational Magazine Award for their reporting inThe New Republic, entitled "How Close They Came".[24]
