Minister of Foreign Affairs Eli Cohen is married, the father of four and a resident of the city of Holon. He is former lecturer at Tel Aviv University. During his army service, he attained the rank of major. He has served as a director in various companies and in a variety of senior positions in the business sector such as Deputy CEO of The Israel Land Development Company LTD and the Head of the corporate sector at Ma’alot S&P rating company. He was also an active in lobbing.
In the political sphere, he served as the Chairman of the Reforms Committee of Knesset, member of the finance committee, and a member of the joint committee for the defense budget. Additionally, he served as the Minister of Economy and Industry in the 34th government, from January 23, 2017. When Israel’s 37th government was sworn in, Eli Cohen was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs, in rotation with Israel Katz, who was appointed Minister of Energy. It was agreed that Cohen would hold the position until December 2023, when he would be replaced by Katz, and in December 2025 the roles of the two would change again.
He has a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Tel Aviv University and a bachelor’s degree in management and economics from The Open University. He also holds a master’s degree in Business Administration (M.Sc) with specialization in finance and accounting from Tel Aviv University and is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA).