Yeshayahu Leibowitz

Life & Legacy

Yeshayahu Leibowitz (Hebrew: ישעיהו ליבוביץ‎; 29 January 1903 – 18 August 1994) was an Israeli Orthodox Jewish public intellectual and polymath. He was a professor of biochemistry, organic chemistry, and neurophysiology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and an editor of the Encyclopaedia Hebraica, a comprehensive encyclopedia in the Hebrew language. He was known for his outspoken views on politics, religion and Jewish philosophy.
Leibowitz argued that the State of Israel and Zionism had become more sacred than Jewish humanist values and described Israeli conduct in the occupied Palestinian territories as "Judeo-Nazi" in nature while warning of the dehumanizing effect of the occupation on the victims and the oppressors. He was referred to as the "prophet of wrath" due to his frequent criticism of Zionism.
His views elicited significant interest within different groups in Israeli society, including among those who were opposed to them.