Ariel Sharon (1928-January 11, 2014) was an Israeli general and politician, considered the greatest field commander in Israel's history. He went on to serve as the 11th Prime Minister of Israel. Sharon was a soldier in the Israeli Army from its creation in 1948, and, as a paratrooper and then an officer, he participated prominently in the War of Independence, the 1956 Suez Crisis, the Six-Day War, and the Yom Kippur War of 1973, among other combat duties. He is seen here as a colonel in 1966.