Born in Russia and raised in the US, Golda Meir was a leading figure in the movement called Zionism, aiming to create a Jewish state in Palestine. In 1948, she was part of the People's Council signing the vital proclamation establishing the State of Israel.
Meir served as Israel's foreign minister from 1956 to 1966 and became its fourth prime minister in 1969. Country's first and the world's third woman to hold such an office, she was described as the "Iron Lady" of Israeli politics years before the epithet became associated with British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Former Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion used to call Meir "the best man in the government". Her biggest dream was to bring peace to the Middle East but it came to a downfall during the Yom Kippur War, when Syrian and Egyptian forces waged a surprise attack on Israel in October 1973. Israeli casualties were high, leading to Meir's resignation. She never forgave herself for not preventing that war. For us, every single death is a tragedy. We don’t like to make war, even when we win. After the last one, there was no joy in our streets. No dancing, no songs, no festivities. And you should have seen our soldiers coming back victorious. Each one was a picture of sadness. Not only because they had seen their brothers die, but because they had had to kill their enemies. Many locked themselves in their rooms and wouldn’t speak. Or when they opened their mouths, it was to repeat a refrain: “I had to shoot, I killed”. It’s no accident many accuse me of conducting public affairs with my heart instead of my head. Well, what if I do? Those who don’t know how to weep with their whole heart don’t know how to laugh either. Anna Mikhailova, Source: Article,
