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Ariel Sharon, defending Israel

His ongoing battle to resolve the Mideast crisis was praised by some and scorned by others, granting Ariel Sharon the nicknames Bulldozer and Hawk. But, as this 1983 CBC Television clip attests, whether adored or reviled, Sharon's legacy is one of a passionate fighter. In this 1983 interview with CBC-TV's Barbara Frum, Sharon - then Israel's defence minister - tells Frum how he plans to deal with the threat the Palestinian Liberation Organization poses to Israel.

• Sharon was born Ariel Scheinermann in Kfar-Malal in British Mandate Palestine on Feb. 27, 1928, to European immigrants. In 1962, he graduated from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem with a degree in law. He served in the Israel Defence Forces for more than 25 years and eventually retired with the rank of major-general. During that period, he was deemed a war hero for his actions in the 1967 Six Day War and the 1973 Yom Kippur War.

• Sharon has two sons, both living in Israel. Sharon's first wife, Margalith, died in a car accident in 1962 and his second wife, Lily, died in 2000. His 11-year-old son from his first marriage died in 1967 when a friend accidentally shot him while the two were playing with the elder Sharon's rifle.

• In 1981, Ariel Sharon was appointed defence minister under Prime Minister Menachem Begin. With the aim of crippling the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) infrastructure established in West Beirut, Sharon led Israel's invasion of Lebanon in 1982.

• Though the PLO was effectively crushed, Sharon was found to be indirectly responsible for the massacre of Palestinians in the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps by Lebanese Christian Phalangists. As a result, Sharon left his post as defence minister in 1983.

• The Sabra and Shatila incident would prove to be one of the more controversial acts of his political career, the effects of which his legacy would never shake. After Time magazine published a story in 1987 alluding to Sharon's responsibility in the massacres, Sharon unsuccessfully sued the magazine for libel.

• Athough the jury found the article defamatory, Sharon lost the suit because he could not convince the court that Time had "acted out of malice."
• In June 2001, relatives of the victims of Sabra and Shatila brought proceedings to have Sharon indicted on war crimes charges, though the lawsuit was eventually rejected.

• Ariel Sharon was elected the 11th prime minister of Israel in February 2001 and remained in the role until incapacitated by the stroke on Jan. 4, 2006. During his prime ministership, Sharon's attempts to bring about stability and security in the region helped him make new friends - as well as enemies.

• In his continuous attempt to establish security in the region, Sharon's political views took many twists and turns. In 2004, in a strategic manoeuvre that stunned and infuriated many, he called for the evacuation of Jewish settlements in Gaza and parts of the West Bank. He then broke away from the right-wing Likud Party he helped create and established a new centrist party.

• After devising a disengagement plan that would see the withdrawal of Israel from settlements in Gaza and parts of the West Bank, Sharon's actions led to growing divisions in his Likud Party. In response, in November 2005, Sharon resigned and formed a new party, Kadima. In December 2005, polls indicated that Sharon was destined to defeat his rivals in the upcoming election and to re-establish his leadership of the country.

• In December 2005 Sharon suffered a stroke and slipped into a coma after a second stroke some days later. When it became apparent that his condition would not improve, the Israeli cabinet took steps to end his term as prime minister. Ehud Olmert then became Israel's new prime minister.

• As of January 2012 Sharon remains in a persistent vegetative state.

Medium: Television
Program: The Journal
Broadcast Date: June 1, 1983
Guest(s): Ariel Sharon
Host: Barbara Frum
Duration: 9:36

Last updated: January 13, 2012

Page consulted on April 25, 2013

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