Sami Turjeman, a 2017-2018 visiting military fellow at The Washington Institute, is a major general in the Israel Defense Forces reserves, having completed 34 years of service at the operational-command core of the IDF. He was drafted into the IDF Armored Corps in 1982 and led both the Sons of Light and Pillar of Fire Reserves formation. From 2005 to 2007, he was head of the Operations Brigade in the Operations Directorate during the Second Lebanon War. After the war, from 2007 to 2009, he commanded the 36th Armored Division in the Northern Command. He was commanding officer of IDF Army Headquarters from 2009-2013, and left to lead the IDF Southern Command, overseeing the last operation in the Gaza Strip during the Protective Edge campaign. He received a BA in political science from Bar-Ilan University and an MBA from Tel Aviv University.
