JERUSALEM (JTA) — Former Haaretz editor in chief David Landau will be honored by Britain’s Queen Elizabeth.
Landau will be named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, or OBE, in the upcoming Birthday Honors list, it was announced Friday. The award will be presented for his “services to advancing UK/Israel understanding and peace in the Middle East.”
Landau, a native of Britain, was the founding editor of Haaretz’s English edition in 1997 and served as editor in chief of Haaretz from 2004 to 2008. He is working now as a columnist for the Israeli daily and Israel correspondent for The Economist. Prior to working at Haaretz, Landau was the managing editor of The Jerusalem Post.
A resident of Jerusalem, Landau made aliyah in 1967.
“I’ve always felt lucky,” Landau told Haaretz after learning of the honor. “Growing up in victorious postwar Britain and living now in the reborn Jewish state, helping it, as a journalist, reach peace with its neighbors. For me, this award powerfully and poignantly vindicates that feeling.”
Mathew Gould, Britain’s ambassador to Israel, who already holds the title of Member of the Order of the British Empire, also appears on the honors list to receive the Companion of the Order of Saint Michael and Saint George, or CMG.
