Lt. Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi (2007-2011)

Gabi Ashkenazi was born in 1954 in Hogar in central Israel. In 1972 he drafted into the IDF and served in the Golani Brigade. A year later her went to officers course. During the course the Yom Kippur War broke out and he fought with the forces of the officers school on the southern front against the Egyptian army.

During the Second Lebanon War in 1982 he served as deputy commander of the Golani Brigade. He commanded the forces which captured Beaufort Castle, and the towns of Nabatieh and Jabel Baruch. Five years later in 1987 he became the commander of the Golani Brigade.

In 1988 he became the head of intelligence of the Northern Command and in 1998 to the head of the whole Northern Command.

In 2005 he officially retired from the IDF but came back less than a year later to serve as the Ministry of Defense's Director-General.

  In 2007 Gabi Askenazi became the Chief of Staff. In his term he dealt with the aftermath and evaluation of the Second Lebanon War as well as Operation Cast Lead in 2009. In 2008 he was decorated with the Legit of Merit by Admiral Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States. 

After he served in the IDF for more than 39 years, he finished his service in 2011.