Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi was born in 1954 in Moshav Hagor. He is a graduate of the military boarding school of the Gymnasia Herzliya in Tel Aviv.
1972 - Ashkenazi was recruited to the IDF Golani Brigade
1973 - During the Yom Kippur War, Ashkenazi participated in the battles along the southern front
1976 - Ashkenazi participated in the Entebbe operation
1978 - Serving as a deputy battalion commander in the Golani Brigade, Ashkenazi was wounded while participating in the Litani operation
1979-1980 - Took part in the Barak Command and Staff Course, which he completed with honors
1980 - Appointed commander of a Golani battalion
1981 - Received the rank of lieutenant colonel
1982 - During the war in Lebanon, Ashkenazi was appointed deputy commander of the Golani Brigade and commanded the forces that captured the Beaufort, Nabatiya and Jebel Baruch
1983-1984 - Participated in the Command and Staff Course of the US Army Marines
1984 - Appointed operations officer at the headquarters of the Infantry and Paratroopers Corps
1985 - Promoted to the rank of colonel and became the commander of a regional brigade in the IDF's Northern Command
1987 - Appointed commander of the Golani Brigade
1988 - Appointed operations officer of the Northern Command
1990 - Transferred to the Armored Corps, received the rank of brigadier general and was appointed commander of a Reserve Armored Division in the Northern Command
1992 - Appointed commander of the IDF Liaison Unit to Lebanon
1994 - Appointed commander of the IDF Operations Unit within the General Staff
1996 - Promoted to major general and served as assistant head of the General Staff Branch, in the IDF's General Staff
1998 - Appointed GOC Northern Command
2002 - Appointed deputy chief of General Staff
2005 - Ashkenazi retired from the IDF
• On February 4, 2007, the government of Israel decided to appoint Gabi Ashkenazi to be the 19th chief of General Staff.
• On February 14, 2007, Gabi Ashkenazi received the rank of lieutenant general and was sworn in as chief of General Staff.
• Lt.-Gen. Ashkenazi holds a BA in Political Science from the University of Haifa and is a graduate of the Harvard Business Management program for senior executives. He is married to Ronit and is the father of Itai and Gali.
