Miri Regev | |
|---|---|
| מירי רגב | |
.jpg) Miri Regev in 2020 | |
| Ministerial roles | |
| 2015–2020 | Minister of Culture and Sport |
| 2020–2021 | Minister of Transportation |
| 2022– | Minister of Transportation and Road Safety |
| Faction represented in theKnesset | |
| 2009– | Likud |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Miriam Siboni (1965-05-26)26 May 1965 (age 60) |
| Spouse | Dror Regev |
| Children | 3 |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  Israel |
| Branch |  Israel Defense Forces |
| Service years | 1983–2008 |
| Rank |  Tat aluf(Brigadier general) |
| Unit | Israeli Military Censor IDF Spokesperson's Unit |
| Conflicts |  Second Lebanon War |
| Awards | Outstanding Presidential of Israel Award for Soldiers |
Miriam "Miri"Regev (Hebrew:מרים "מירי" רגב; born 26 May 1965) is an Israeli politician who currently serves asMinister of Transport, National Infrastructure and Road Safety. Previously she wasMinister of Culture and Sport andActing Prime Minister of Israel. She entered politics following an extensive military career. In her last military post, she was abrigadier-general in theIsrael Defense Forces and served as theIDF Spokeswoman.[1]
Miriam Siboni (later Miri Regev) was born inKiryat Gat toSephardi Jewish immigrants. She attended Rogozin High School in Kiryat Gat. Her father, Felix, was fromMorocco and her mother, Mercedes, was fromSpain.[2] In 1983, she joined theGadna, where she became a platoon commander, serving in the position until 1986. She earned a bachelor's degree in Informal Education from TheBeit Berl academic college, and anMBA fromOno Academic College. She is married to Dror Regev, an engineer atIsrael Aerospace Industries and has three children. Her husband is from a left-wing backgroundand holds some views opposing her own.[3][4][5][6]
She began serving as theIDF Spokesperson's representative in theIsraeli Southern Command. Regev was promoted to acolonel rank for the position of Deputy IDF Spokesperson in 2002. In 2003, she was appointed coordinator of the national public relations efforts at theIsraeli Prime Minister's Office in preparation for theIraq War. After a short stint (2004–2005) as theChief Press and Media Censor, she was promoted to the rank ofbrigadier general and to the position of IDF Spokesperson in 2005.[5] She served in this position during Israel'sdisengagement from Gaza in 2005 and the2006 Lebanon War.[7] In 2007, she was discharged and was succeeded byAvi Benayahu.
In November 2008, Regev joined theLikud party, saying that she had been a supporter of the party's platform for many years.[8] She won twenty-seventh place on the party's list for the2009 elections, just high enough to enter theKnesset as Likud won 27 seats. At the2015 elections Regev was re-elected, after being placed fifth on Likud's national list.[9] She was subsequently appointed by Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu as Minister of Culture and Sport in thenew government.
Revital Madar, a Tunisian-Israeli writer forHaaretz,[10] stated that Regev had faced discrimination due to her Moroccan origins, and her forthright behaviour is perceived as being stereotypicallyMizrahi.[11]
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In September 2015, four months in office, Regev announced a list of criteria that will cause the withdrawal of state funding the following year. The list included the deformation of state symbols and a call forboycotting Israel.[12]
In July 2016, Regev announced that she would not participate in the2016 Summer Olympics opening ceremonies, because they take place onShabbat.[13]
In her position as Minister of Culture, Regev frequently equates artisticFreedom of Expression with the power of the government to withdraw its funding, using the term "Freedom of Funding".[14][15] Regev also argued that state-funded artists or organisations must show "loyalty" to the Israeli state. She has called this a "Loyalty in Culture" initiative, and has proposed legislation making "support for a cultural institution dependent on its loyalty to the state of Israel".[16] She has said the groupBreaking the Silence "hurts Israel's image" and accused a gallery that had hosted a talk by the group of "holding political activities".[17]
At the closing ceremony of the2017 Maccabiah Games on 18 July 2017, Regev passed the Maccabiah torch to a number of Maccabiah athletes.[18][19]
In October 2018, she attended the Grand Slam Judo tournament inAbu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.[20] During that tournament, Regev was overwhelmed as theHatikva was played in a Muslim Arab capital.[21]
In May 2020, Regev was offered the portfolio ofMinistry of Transport, National Infrastructure and Road Safety for the first half of the 35th government of Israel and the portfolio offoreign minister during the second half of the incoming government's term.[22] She was sworn in to this position on 17 May 2020.[23] She was replaced byMerav Michaeli following the formation of the 36th government on 14 June 2021.[24]
On 29 December 2022, Regev was appointed the position for a second time by Benjamin Netanyahu during the formation of thethirty-seventh government of Israel.[25]
In May 2024,Channel 13 aired a report where the former Ministry of Transport chief of professional staff accused Regev of politicising the Ministry, giving preferential treatment to localities with higher levels of Likud support and to Likud activists.[26] In early June 2024, theLahav 433 unit of the Israel Police raided the Ministry's offices as part of an investigation into corruption following the Channel 13 report.[27]
On 14 August 2021, Regev announced that she would run against Netanyahu as leader of Likud. Stressing her Sephardi background, she stated "The time has come to have a Sephardi prime minister, I think the Likud rank and file must vote this time for someone who represents their class, their ethnicity and their agenda." She also stated that she would not run against Netanyahu. She also made it clear that if she does not become leader of Likud, she may form a new party.[28]
Gregg Carlstrom ofThe Atlantic described Regev in 2016 as "an acrimonious populist, who occasionally draws comparisons toDonald Trump."[29]
In May 2012, at a demonstration againstillegal immigrants in Tel Aviv, Regev said that "Sudanese infiltrators are a cancer in the nation's body".[30][31][32][33] She later said that the quote was misrepresented, and, while justifying the comparison, apologized for seeming to compare human beings to cancer.[34] In a 2012 interview, in response to criticism alleging that her views were totalitarian, Regev said that she was "happy to be a fascist".[35][36][37] In 2016, fellow Likud legislatorGila Gamliel called comments by Regev advocating for state control over the content of a public broadcasting company "borderline fascist". Benjamin Netanyahu has defended Regev from charges of fascism, stating that "'there was a tendency within the left to denigrate opponents as fascist'.[a] It is a derogatory name [used] by the left for its enemies."[38]
Regev met withLGBT members of her party,[39] saying that "not only the left can support and embrace the gay community".[40] In November 2018, Regev expressed support for a law that would allow surrogacy for same-sex male couples in Israel, stating that the coalition's decision to vote against the law was wrong and emphasized the right of LGBT individuals to be parents and raise children.[41]
Regev participated in the Israeli nationalistDance of Flags march in May 2023.[42] In July 2024, after the Israeli military police visitedSde Teiman detention camp to detain nine Israeli soldiers suspected of abuse of a Palestinian prisoner, Regev commented that arrests of Israeli soldiers were "dangerous" during war, and warned against military prosecutions that were "appeasing our enemies".[43]
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