CHANCERIESTHE DIPLOMATIC ATLAS

Avraham Harman

Avraham Harman was born in London and studied law at Oxford before moving to Palestine in 1938. After Israeli independence he worked in the Foreign Ministry's information service and held consular posts in Montreal and New York. He became ambassador to the United States in 1959. 1

Harman pressed American officials to supply weapons that Israel considered necessary against Arab states receiving Soviet equipment. In February 1961 he raised the military balance and the possibility of reconsidering Washington's refusal to sell Hawk missiles with national security adviser McGeorge Bundy. His embassy served through the 1967 war. After leaving Washington, he became president of the Hebrew University in 1968, directing the institution until 1983 and overseeing the rebuilding and expansion of its Mount Scopus campus. 2, 3, 1

Washington Appointments

  • Israel — Ambassador, 1959–1968

Sources

  1. Avraham Harman

    Biography and diplomatic/academic career; revision1347493582

  2. Memorandum From the Department of State Executive Secretary to the President's Special Assistant for National Security Affairs

    FRUS1961–1963 XVII, document15

  3. Dr. Avraham Harman

    Former president profile

  4. Diplomatic Representation for State of Israel — incoming chiefs chronology

    Actual archived HTML downloaded and gzip-decompressed. Page dated 8 October 2013 but includes Dermer credential row 3 December 2013. Records Appt. separately from Amb. E. and P.; keep both literal labels. Original https://2009-2017.state.gov/s/cpr/rls/94062.htm returned a Technical Difficulties page. Archive provides actual content.

  5. Former Ambassadors to the U.S.

    Archived official roster, 1948–2006. It dates Shoval’s second term to 1998–2000 and Ivry’s term to 2000–2002, corroborated by the State Protocol appointment dated 18 January 2000. The supplemental JVL summary differs on this transition.

  6. Past Presidents of the University

    Harman served as university president from 1968 to 1983, after Washington. Eilat served as president from 1962 to 1968 and was Israel’s first ambassador to the United States.

Biography checked 2026-10-28.

Cite or Reuse This Biography

Avraham Harman. Chanceries Diplopedia. Biography reviewed 2026-10-28. Record dee6a99adb287694. https://chanceries.org/diplopedia/people/avraham-harman-bfbc64b8c3/

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Biography: Avraham Harman