Michael Herzog (ambassador)

Michael "Mike" Herzog (Hebrew: מיכאל (מייק) הרצוג; born July 15, 1952) is an Israeli diplomat and retired military officer who has been the Israeli Ambassador to the United States since November 2021.^[1]

Michael Herzog מיכאל הרצוג
Herzog in 2021
Israeli Ambassador to the United States
Incumbent
Assumed office November 15, 2021
Prime Minister	Naftali Bennett Yair Lapid Benjamin Netanyahu
Preceded by	Gilad Erdan
Personal details
Born	Michael Herzog (1952-07-15) July 15, 1952 (age 72) Israel
Citizenship	Israeli
Spouse	Shirin Herzog
Children	2
Parents	Chaim Herzog (father) Aura Herzog (mother)
Relatives	Herzog family
Alma mater	Hebrew University of Jerusalem University of Haifa National Security College

Biography

Michael (Mike) Herzog is the son of Chaim Herzog, the sixth President of Israel. Herzog's mother is Aura Herzog. His paternal grandfather was Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog, the chief rabbi of both Ireland and Israel. His uncle, Yaakov Herzog, served as Israel's ambassador to Canada. His younger brother, Isaac Herzog, is the eleventh President of Israel.

Herzog is married to Shirin Herzog (née Halperin), an attorney, with whom he has two children.

Military career

Herzog served as a general in the Israel Defense Forces. He was the military secretary for both Shaul Mofaz and Ehud Barak when they served as defense ministers.^[2]

Non-military career

A researcher in the field of Israeli-Middle East relations, Herzog has been a fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy think tank and participated in the 2013-2014 peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. In 2021, he was appointed as Ambassador to the U.S. by Prime Minister of Israel Naftali Bennett, replacing Gilad Erdan. Erdan previously was Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. as well as Ambassador to the United Nations, and continued to hold the UN role after Herzog replaced him as representative to the U.S.^[3]

References

1. Magid, Jacob (November 16, 2021). "New Israeli ambassador to US Mike Herzog pledges to keep Israel a nonpartisan issue". The Times of Israel. Archived from the original on November 16, 2021.
2. Lis, Jonathan (September 5, 2023). "Israel Okays Appointment of Michael Herzog as Ambassador to U.S." Haaretz. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
3. Harkov, Lahav (August 7, 2021). "Michael 'Mike' Herzog, president's brother, is new US ambassador pick". The Jerusalem Post. Archived from the original on August 9, 2021.