On the arrivals signs, the name “Ben-Gurion“ is usually associated with Tel Aviv. However, the airport is located near the city of Lod, about 15 kilometers from Tel Aviv and about 40 kilometers from Jerusalem. It is named after David Ben-Gurion - the man who read the declaration of independence of Israel on May 14, 1948 and became the country's first prime minister.
From David Grün to Ben-Gurion
David Yosef Grün was born on October 16, 1886 in Płońsk, then part of the Russian Empire. He later adopted the name Ben-Gurion, with which he remained in history. In 1906, he settled in Palestine and became involved in the building of the Jewish labor movement.
In the following decades, Ben-Gurion became one of the most influential leaders of the Jewish community in Palestine. From 1935, he headed the executive body of the Jewish Agency - a political structure that represented the Jewish community before the British authorities and the international community. In this role, he participated in the preparation of the institutions that would later become the basis of the Israeli state.
The Voice of the Declaration
On May 14, 1948, in Tel Aviv, Ben-Gurion read the Declaration on the Establishment of the State of Israel and signed it together with the other members of the Provisional State Council. The document states: “We proclaim the establishment of a Jewish state in Eretz Israel, to be called the State of Israel.“
After the declaration of independence, the country was embroiled in war with the armies of neighboring Arab countries. Ben-Gurion led the government and defense while the army, state administration, and basic institutions of the new state were being built. He held the post of prime minister from 1948 to 1953, returning to it in 1955, and remained at the helm until 1963.
The Desert and the Last Years
Ben-Gurion was among the politicians who insisted on the development of the Negev - the desert south of Israel. In 1953, he temporarily withdrew from power and settled in the kibbutz Sde Boker. He later returned to the government, but after his final retirement in 1963, he again chose life in the desert.
He died on December 1, 1973 in Ramat Gan. That same year, Israel's main airport, previously known as Lod Airport, was renamed Ben-Gurion International Airport. Thus, the politician's name remains not only in textbooks and state history, but also at the point through which millions of travelers enter or leave Israel.
Sources: apnews.com, blogs.timesofisrael.com