Lecture
Philip Rubenstein
Wednesday 15.04.2026
Philip Rubenstein
Israel’s Prime Ministers, Part 5: The Upheaval
Wednesday 15.04.2026
How to watch
This lecture starts on 15 April at 5:00pm (UK).
Summary
In 1977, Menachem Begin (1913–92) achieved what had seemed unthinkable: the defeat of Labour’s long dominance and a political earthquake that reshaped Israel’s identity. After three decades in opposition, Begin entered office with a vision and a willingness to defy expectations. This lecture explores the turbulence of his premiership: from the historic peace with Egypt to sweeping domestic and economic changes, to the controversial expansion of settlements and the culmination of the 1982 Lebanon War, a conflict that began with limited aims but ended in far-reaching consequences. A story of triumph, controversy and unintended outcomes, this is the second act in Begin’s remarkable journey.
Philip Rubenstein
Philip Rubenstein was director of the Parliamentary War Crimes Group, which, in the mid-to-late 1980s, campaigned to bring Nazi war criminals living in the UK to justice. Philip was also the founder-director of the Holocaust Educational Trust and played a role in getting the study of the Shoah onto the national school’s curriculum in the UK. These days, he works with family businesses, advising on governance and continuity from one generation to the next.