Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told cabinet ministers on Sunday that he intends to name the Negev Nuclear Research Center after former President Shimon Peres, who passed away on Sept. 28 at the age of 93. "Shimon Peres contributed such a great deal to the creation of this enterprise, an enterprise that will be vital for the security of the State of Israel for generations to come, and I think it is appropriate and just to name the research center after him," Netanyahu said at the opening of the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem. In the 1950s, while serving as director general of the Defense Ministry, Peres helped establish Israel's nuclear program. He was a Knesset member from 1959 to 2007, and held numerous ministerial posts, including stints as defense minister and prime minister. Peres left the Knesset to become Israel's ninth president from 2007 to 2014. He died two weeks after suffering a massive stroke, and passed away surrounded by family and close friends. One relative said, "He fought until the very last moment."
Dimona research facility to be named for Peres
PM Netanyahu tells ministers he plans to name the Negev Nuclear Research Center after late former president • Peres "contributed such a great deal to ... an enterprise that will be vital for the security of the State of Israel for generations," PM says.
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