Shimon Peres, Israel’s 9th president, passes away

Israel's 9th president, former Prime Minister Shimon Peres, died early Wednesday morning at Sheba Hospital after suffering a stroke. He was 93. The life of Peres, who was born in 1923, was interwoven with the history of the state of Israel. He was a member of the Knesset for about half a century and also served as finance minister, foreign minister and defense minister during his political career. Peres helped procure arms for the IDF on behalf of then Prime Minister David Ben Gurion and played a main role in the establishment of Israel's nuclear reactor in Dimona. He was one of the architects of the Oslo Accords with the Palestinians, received the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize, and was awarded a US Congressional Gold Medal.