29 Facts About Miri Regev

Miriam "Miri" Regev is an Israeli politician who currently serves as Minister of Transport, National Infrastructure and Road Safety.

Miri Regev earned a bachelor's degree in Informal Education from The Beit Berl academic college, and an MBA from Ono Academic College.

Miri Regev is married to Dror Regev, an engineer at Israel Aerospace Industries and has three children.

Miri Regev's husband is from a left-wing background and holds some views opposing her own.

Miri Regev began serving as the IDF Spokesperson's representative in the Israeli Southern Command.

Miri Regev served in this position during Israel's disengagement from Gaza in 2005 and the 2006 Lebanon War.

In November 2008, Miri Regev joined the Likud party, saying that she had been a supporter of the party's platform for many years.

Miri Regev won twenty-seventh place on the party's list for the 2009 elections, just high enough to enter the Knesset as Likud won 27 seats.

At the 2015 elections Miri Regev was re-elected, after being placed fifth on Likud's national list.

Miri Regev was appointed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as Minister of Culture and Sport in the new government.

Revital Madar, a Tunisian-Israeli writer for Haaretz, stated that Miri Regev had faced discrimination due to her Moroccan origins, and her forthright behaviour is perceived as being stereotypically Mizrahi.

In September 2015, four months in office, Miri Regev announced a list of criteria that will cause the withdrawal of state funding the following year.

In July 2016, Miri Regev announced that she would not participate in the 2016 Summer Olympics opening ceremonies, because they take place on Shabbat.

Miri Regev argued that state-funded artists or organisations must show "loyalty" to the Israeli state.

Miri Regev has called this a "Loyalty in Culture" initiative, and has proposed legislation making "support for a cultural institution dependent on its loyalty to the state of Israel".

Miri Regev has said the group Breaking the Silence "hurts Israel's image" and accused a gallery that had hosted a talk by the group of "holding political activities".

At the closing ceremony of the 2017 Maccabiah Games on 18 July 2017, Miri Regev passed the Maccabiah torch to a number of Maccabiah athletes.

In May 2020, Miri Regev was offered the portfolio of Ministry of Transport, National Infrastructure and Road Safety for the first half of the 35th government of Israel and the portfolio of foreign minister during the second half of the incoming government's term.

Miri Regev was sworn in to this position on 17 May 2020.

Miri Regev was replaced by Merav Michaeli following the formation of the 36th government on 14 June 2021.

On 29 December 2022, Miri Regev was appointed the position for a second time by Benjamin Netanyahu during the formation of the thirty-seventh government of Israel.

On 14 August 2021, Miri Regev announced that she would run against Netanyahu as leader of Likud.

In May 2012, at a demonstration against illegal immigrants in Tel Aviv, Miri Regev said that "Sudanese infiltrators are a cancer in the nation's body".

Miri Regev later said that the quote was misrepresented, and, while justifying the comparison, apologized for seeming to compare human beings to cancer.

In 2016, fellow Likud legislator Gila Gamliel called comments by Miri Regev advocating for state control over the content of a public broadcasting company "borderline fascist".

Miri Regev met with LGBT members of her party, saying that "not only the left can support and embrace the gay community".

In November 2018, Miri Regev expressed support for a law that would allow surrogacy for same-sex male couples in Israel, stating that the coalition's decision to vote against the law was wrong and emphasized the right of LGBT individuals to be parents and raise children.

Miri Regev participated in the Israeli nationalist Dance of Flags march in May 2023.

In July 2024, after the Israeli military police visited Sde Teiman detention camp to detain nine Israeli soldiers suspected of abuse of a Palestinian prisoner, Miri Regev commented that arrests of Israeli soldiers were "dangerous" during war, and warned against military prosecutions that were "appeasing our enemies".