Israel Prize winners to receive honorary doctorates from BGU

By JONAH NEWMAN
Two former winners of the Israel Prize, Haim Israeli and Ada Karmi-Melamede, will also be the recipients of honorary doctorates from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. The degrees will be presented next Sunday as part of the University's commemoration of "Ben-Gurion Day," the annual event marking the death of former prime minister David Ben-Gurion. The Israel Prize is the state's most prestigious award, given every year on Independence Day. Israeli was a recipient of the Israel Prize in 1998 in the category of "Outstanding Contribution to Society and the State of Israel." He will accept his honorary degree for his role as personal counsel and adviser to almost every defense minister over the past 60 years and his dedication to the State of Israel. Karmi-Melamede, an architect, received the Israel Prize for Architecture this past year. She will accept an honorary doctorate for her work in architecture and involvement in the design of many buildings on the Ben-Gurion campus in Beersheba. BGU will also award honorary degrees to Bank Leumi director Galia Maor, for her central role in one of Israel's leading banks; Swiss philanthropist Marc Rich, for his contributions to cancer research and education in Israel and the world; and Prof. Hermona Soreq of Hebrew University, for her research in molecular neurobiology. Shmuel Rifman will receive the Yakir Hanegev Prize for his service as head of the Ramat Negev Regional Council.