Ex-Haaretz editor David Landau to get OBE
British-born journalist honored for services to peace and contribution to UK-Israel ties
London-born Israeli journalist David Landau, a former managing editor of The Jerusalem Post who founded Haaretz’s English edition and was editor-in-chief of Haaretz from 2004-8, is to be awarded the OBE (Order of the British Empire).
Landau, who began his journalistic career in Israel as a 20-year-old in 1967, will be honored by Queen Elizabeth II in the upcoming Birthday Honors list, Haaretz reported Friday, for his services to peace and his contribution to UK-Israel ties.
“David represents a special link between the United Kingdom and Israel,” British Ambassador to Israel Matthew Gould was quoted as saying. “He has made a huge contribution over several decades to English-language journalism in Israel, and it is wonderful that Her Majesty has chosen to honor him in this way. Throughout his career he has shown commitment to peace, and worked tirelessly to build relations between the UK and Israel. I am delighted he will now be an Officer of the Order of the British Empire.”
Haaretz quoted Landau saying he had always felt “lucky,” and that the new honor underscored that sense. “Growing up in victorious postwar Britain and living now in the reborn Jewish state, helping it, as a journalist, reach peace with its neighbors. For me, this award powerfully and poignantly vindicates that feeling,” he said.
Landau, who lives in Jerusalem, is most recently the author of this year’s biography of Ariel Sharon, “Arik,” which was praised in The Times of Israel as “a nuanced, insightful and, ultimately, favorable biography” that “will be regarded, in the years to come, as the definitive work on the eleventh prime minister’s life.”
The Times of Israel Community.