Golda Meir was Prime Minister of Israel from 1969 to 1974 – the only woman to date in this office. It stood for the dream of a socialist country and hardship against its Arab neighbors.
Born in Russia, raised in the USA, emigrated to Palestine in 1921: The story of her life is an example of the complicated and protracted history of the state of Israel. What distinguished the committed Zionist from a young age were her stubbornness, determination and hardness. She lacked diplomatic finesse, but in 1948 she was briefly the first ambassador of the newly founded state of Israel to the USSR and since 1956 foreign minister of her country. She was also known for her legendary humor.
The podcast traces the life of this extraordinary woman and embeds it in the highly complex situation of the Middle East conflict. In 1969, after a long march through various party and government offices, the politician, who had long been a leading figure of the socialist-democratic party Mapai, moved to the top of Israel, but she proved to be overwhelmed with the tasks at the time in Israeli society as well as in politics, the urgently needed integration of the immigrant oriental Jews and the threatening hostility of the increasingly armed neighboring Arab states.
In the Yom Kippur War that broke out on October 6, 1973, Israel ultimately triumphed again, but only with great difficulty. After another election was won, Meir, who was in poor health, realized that trust in her had been shaken. She resigned on April 14, 1974.
And here is the podcast: