Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations

The office’s formal designation is “Ambassador, Permanent Representative,” distinguishing the head of Israel’s mission from its Deputy Permanent Representative.[2] In multilateral diplomacy, a permanent representative heads a country’s mission to an international organization; representatives to the United Nations hold ambassadorial rank and conduct business with envoys from many governments.[1] Israel’s representation consequently involves both communicating national positions to UN bodies and working within the organization’s committees and leadership structures.[7][8]

The office has been held by diplomats with different professional backgrounds, including parliamentary officeholders and a representative recruited from the private sector.[3][9] Dan Gillerman, who served from 2003 to 2008, was the first appointee to come from Israel’s private sector, while Danny Danon entered the post after serving in the Knesset and holding several parliamentary and government responsibilities.[3][9] Gabriela Shalev, whose tenure ran from 2008 to 2010, was Israel’s first female ambassador to the UN.[10]

The mission’s activities extend beyond speeches defending Israel’s policies. Israeli representatives have held General Assembly vice presidencies and chaired committees.[8][9] They have also promoted development resolutions and organized diplomatic visits to Israel.[3][11] These forms of participation have developed alongside condemnatory decisions directed at Israel within UN institutions.[8] Membership in the Western European and Others Group, or WEOG, acquired in 2000, helped Israeli representatives seek and hold institutional positions that form an important part of this wider diplomatic work.[8]

Abba Eban represented Israel’s new government at the United Nations in 1948, before becoming its first permanent representative following admission to membership in 1949.[5] His work at the UN had earlier included service as a liaison officer with the UN Special Committee on Palestine and participation in the delegation involved in the General Assembly’s passage of Resolution 181(II), the partition resolution.[12] He headed the Jewish Agency delegation at the UN in 1947 and subsequently worked to persuade member states to recognize Israel.[13]

Eban advocated Israel’s admission before the General Assembly’s Ad Hoc Political Committee on May 5, 1949, and his lobbying helped secure support for membership.[14] On May 11, the General Assembly adopted Resolution 273 (III), admitting Israel by 37 votes to 12, with nine abstentions, following a renewed membership application and a Security Council recommendation.[15] Israel thereby became the organization’s 59th member.[14] This membership process was distinct from the General Assembly’s earlier adoption of the partition plan on November 29, 1947.[16] Eban hoisted the Israeli flag at the UN building in New York after admission that May.[13]

Eban remained permanent representative until 1959 and simultaneously served as Israel’s ambassador to the United States from 1950 to 1959.[5] His tenure also included service as a vice president of the General Assembly, establishing an early precedent for Israeli participation in its leadership.[9] Michael Comay served as permanent representative from 1960 to 1967; the UN’s June 1963 directory identifies him as “Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary and Permanent Representative to the United Nations” and lists the mission’s staff and New York address.[17][18]

Gideon Rafael succeeded Comay in 1967 after serving as ambassador to Belgium and the European Community.[19] He held the UN post until 1968, when he returned to Jerusalem as director-general of Israel’s Foreign Ministry.[19] His wider diplomatic career encompassed work associated with Israel’s founding, the 1956 Suez War, and implementation of Security Council Resolution 242 of 1967.[19] Yosef Tekoa subsequently served from 1968 to 1975, followed by Chaim Herzog from 1975 to 1978.[17]

Herzog’s tenure became particularly associated with opposition to the General Assembly resolution equating Zionism with racism.[20] On the General Assembly podium, he tore up the resolution, denounced the decision as racist, and warned delegates that they might be held responsible for a future Holocaust.[20] His opposition also included an intensive information campaign against the resolution.[21] The episode linked the ambassador’s public role to the defense of Jewish national identity as well as to representation of the Israeli government.[20]

Yehuda Blum served from 1978 to 1984, followed by Benjamin Netanyahu from 1984 to 1988.[17] Blum was also a member of Israel’s negotiating team for the peace treaty with Egypt during his UN tenure, including the Camp David talks in February 1979 and the Blair House talks the following month.[22] Dore Gold later held the permanent representative’s office from 1997 to 1999.[9] Gold was also a member of Israel’s delegation to the Wye River Peace Talks in 1998.[23]

Gillerman’s service from 2003 to 2008 included the adoption of the first successful Israeli resolution at the UN.[9] In 2005, he was elected a vice president of the General Assembly, becoming the first Israeli to hold that office since Eban.[9] Shalev followed him as permanent representative from 2008 to 2010 and presented her credentials to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.[10] In February 2011, Israel’s government approved Ron Prosor’s appointment after the position had been vacant for six months following Shalev’s departure.[24] Prosor served from 2011 to 2015.[9]

Prosor’s tenure included service as a General Assembly vice president and as chair of the UN Human Rights Committee.[9] He also convened the General Assembly’s first session on antisemitism.[9] His appointment as a General Assembly vice president came in 2012, following Gillerman’s appointment in 2005.[8] These assignments placed successive Israeli ambassadors in institutional roles alongside their responsibilities as national representatives.[8][9]

Danon became Israel’s 17th permanent representative in October 2015, succeeding Ron Prosor.[3][17] Before his appointment, he had been a Knesset member from February 2009 to August 2015, Deputy Speaker of the 18th Knesset, Deputy Minister of Defense, and chair of the Committee on the Rights of the Child.[3] His first term continued until 2020, when Gilad Erdan succeeded him.[17] In December 2019, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had decided to extend Danon’s term through May 2020; Danon had also been selected to co-chair the UN Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation with Ghana’s ambassador.[25]

Danon returned to the Knesset after his first diplomatic posting.[25] In June 2024, Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Israel Katz chose him for a second term, with the announcement specifying that the appointment would be submitted for government approval and citing his international experience.[26] Erdan was completing four years at the UN, had also served for a year as ambassador to the United States, and chose to return to Israel for family reasons.[26] Danon resumed the UN office in August 2024, and reporting in 2026 continued to identify him as Israel’s permanent representative.[6]

Discussing his return, Danon said that he had not expected to undertake another term after the intensity of his first, but accepted the prime minister’s request following the October 7, 2023 attacks.[27] He explained that he believed his experience and knowledge of the UN system would be useful in those circumstances.[27] His second appointment thus brought an experienced former officeholder back to the mission after Erdan’s intervening tenure.[26][27]

Formal correspondence to UN bodies is one means by which the permanent representative communicates Israel’s positions.[7] A letter dated December 18, 2024, addressed to the presidents of the General Assembly and Security Council, challenged allegations concerning Israeli legislation adopted on October 28 regarding the cessation of UNRWA activities.[7] The document illustrates the ambassador’s use of written communications directed to both principal forums, in addition to public speeches and committee work.[7]

Committee leadership has provided another route for Israeli participation.[8] In June 2016, Danon was elected chair of the General Assembly’s Sixth Committee, which deals with legal issues, including international law and terrorism-related matters.[28][29] He received 109 votes in an election that made him the first Israeli to chair one of the General Assembly’s six main committees.[4][28] The election followed a diplomatic effort and took place despite a campaign by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation against his appointment.[29]

In May 2017, Danon was elected a vice president of the General Assembly’s 72nd session, with the one-year assignment beginning in September.[30] The responsibilities included chairing meetings in the president’s absence, helping set the session’s agenda, and overseeing rules and decorum.[30] He held the position as a representative of the Western European and Other States group.[25] This work differed from presenting Israel’s national position because it included responsibilities for the conduct of the Assembly’s proceedings.[30]

Other Israeli appointments extended participation into specialized UN bodies.[8] In January 2019, Israel was selected to represent the Western Group as deputy chair of the Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations.[8] In July that year, Yaron Vaks was selected as deputy chair of the General Assembly’s Fifth Committee, representing Western countries in the body responsible for UN budget and administration.[8] These appointments were part of a broader pattern of Israeli representatives obtaining positions within the organization after entry into WEOG.[8]

The delegation has also promoted substantive initiatives in economic development.[11] In November 2016, the UN Second Committee approved the Israeli-sponsored resolution “Entrepreneurship for Development” by 123 votes to 30, with eight abstentions.[11] It addressed removing barriers facing entrepreneurs by improving regulatory environments, widening access to financial services and education, and expanding opportunities for women, minorities, and people with disabilities.[11] The Israeli delegation held an event on entrepreneurship and innovation the day before the vote.[11]

Diplomatic outreach has included bringing other countries’ representatives to Israel.[3] During his first term, Danon brought more than 100 UN ambassadors to the country.[3] At his 2020 farewell event, the World Jewish Congress and Jewish National Fund honored him as he prepared to leave the office.[3] The visits and the farewell recognition formed a distinct part of his record alongside elections to committee leadership and participation in General Assembly proceedings.[3]

The post is supported by a mission staff that includes a Deputy Permanent Representative, rather than consisting solely of the ambassador.[2] It has also had an official New York residence for the head of the delegation, used since 1978.[31] Occupants listed over the years include Yehuda Blum, Benjamin Netanyahu, Yohanan Bein, Yoram Aridor, Gad Yaacobi, Dore Gold, Yehuda Lancry, Dan Gillerman, Gabriela Shalev, Meron Reuben, Ron Prosor, and Danny Danon.[31] The Fifth Avenue residence was purchased in 1986 for $99,000 for continued use as the delegation head’s official residence.[31]

The permanent representative also presents current Israeli diplomatic priorities directly to the Security Council.[32] In December 2025, Danon outlined five stated goals for 2026: disarming Hamas in Gaza, eliminating Iran-backed terror groups, ending Palestinian Authority incentives for terrorism, protecting civilians and minorities in Syria, and advancing regional cooperation and normalization.[32] These were objectives he presented on Israel’s behalf, not a record of completed outcomes.[32]

Eban’s work connected the origins of the office to Israel’s admission as a sovereign member of the United Nations.[12][14] His involvement extended from the partition deliberations to membership advocacy and then a decade as permanent representative.[5][12] His simultaneous service as ambassador to the United States also joined the UN posting with another major Israeli diplomatic assignment during the state’s early years.[5]

Successive representatives have used the office to address issues concerning Jewish identity and security as well as immediate government policy.[9][20] Herzog’s response to the resolution equating Zionism with racism and Prosor’s convening of the first General Assembly session on antisemitism are prominent examples.[9][20] Their activities demonstrate the place of Jewish concerns within the office’s public work, alongside formal representation of Israel.[9][20]

Institutional achievements have supplied a further dimension to the office’s importance.[8] Gillerman’s General Assembly vice presidency, Prosor’s leadership assignments, and Danon’s chairmanship of the Legal Committee established a record of Israeli participation in the organization’s own procedures.[9][28] The entrepreneurship resolution and the science, technology, and innovation forum assignment added development-related work to that institutional record.[25][11] These activities placed Israeli representatives in settings concerned with legal affairs, economic opportunity, and international administrative cooperation, rather than exclusively debates about Israel.[8][11]

Israel’s acceptance into WEOG in 2000 helped create opportunities for such participation.[8] The subsequent record combined Israeli appointments, changes in some developing countries’ voting patterns, and continuing condemnatory decisions in UN institutions.[8] The permanent representative’s work has therefore encompassed opposition to decisions directed against Israel.[8][29] It has also included efforts to secure support for Israeli initiatives and candidates within the same organization.[8][11]

Israeli ambassadors have openly criticized what they regard as hostility and unequal treatment at the UN.[6][33] In 2011, Prosor described his principal mission as preventing the “de-legitimization and the demonization of Israel” at the UN and internationally.[33] Addressing the anticipated General Assembly vote on Palestinian statehood, he argued that a unilateral declaration outside negotiations would lead to violence, while saying that Israel would seek support in every region rather than abandon any country.[33]

Danon similarly characterized the diplomatic environment as hostile.[27] In a 2024 interview, he estimated that the Israeli team numbered about 25 people, compared with “maybe 1,000 people” in New York who, in his words, worked daily to attack Israel; these figures were his estimate rather than an independently verified staffing comparison.[27] In a 2026 interview, he recalled repeatedly reminding officials and member states after October 7 that hostages remained in captivity, and described the UN as having become “a platform to incite against Israel.”[6] Such statements express the ambassadors’ assessments of the institution rather than independently established measurements of its conduct.[6][27]

A separate dispute concerned registration of the official residence.[31] Benjamin Netanyahu’s name appeared on the apartment’s share certificate, while the Foreign Ministry maintained that the state had purchased the residence and that it belonged solely to the state.[31] The ministry said legal proceedings to correct the registration had been underway since December 2016.[31] The reported dispute concerned the property’s legal registration and ownership, rather than the permanent representative’s diplomatic responsibilities.[31]