Pnina Tamano-Shata

Pnina Tamano-Shata
Tamano-Shata in 2020
Ministerial roles
2020–2022Minister of Immigrant Absorption
Faction represented in the Knesset
2013–2015Yesh Atid
2018–2019Yesh Atid
2019–2021Blue and White
2022–National Unity
Personal details
Born (1981-11-01) 1 November 1981
Wuzaba, Gondar, Ethiopia

Pnina Tamano-Shata (Hebrew: פְּנִינָה תַּמֶנוֹ־שֶׁטֶה; born 1 November 1981) is an Israeli lawyer, journalist, and politician. The first Ethiopian-born woman to enter the Knesset in 2013,[1] in 2020 she also became the first Ethiopian-born Israeli cabinet member after being appointed Minister of Immigrant Absorption.[2]

Early life

Tamano-Shata was born in Wuzaba, a village located near the city of Gondar in the Amhara Region of northern Ethiopia. She is the granddaughter of Kahen Maharat Shata, a prominent spiritual leader of Ethiopian Jews.[3] Her family immigrated to Israel when she was three during the evacuation of the Ethiopian Jews from Sudan named Operation Moses.[1] She, her four siblings, and her father Menashe were among almost 7,000 Ethiopian Jews airlifted out of the country by Mossad to Israel between November 1984 and January 1985. Her mother Mazal and two sisters arrived in Israel in December 1985.[2][4]

She studied law at Ono Academic College at Kiryat Ono in the Tel Aviv District, and became Deputy Chairman of the national Ethiopian Student Association.[5]

From 2007 to 2012 she worked as a reporter for Channel 1.[6]

Political career

Prior to the 2013 Knesset elections Tamano-Shata joined the new Yesh Atid party. Placed 14th on the party's list,[7] she became a Knesset member as the party won 19 seats. She was placed 13th on the party's list for the 2015 elections,[8] but lost her seat as the party was reduced to 11 seats.

On 9 February 2018, she returned to the Knesset as a replacement for Ya'akov Peri,[9] who had resigned following allegations that he had leaked information during a corruption investigation twenty years beforehand.[10] Prior to the April 2019 elections, Yesh Atid became part of the Blue and White, with Tamano-Shata placed 24th on the alliance's list. She was re-elected as Blue and White won 35 seats. She was re-elected again in the September 2019 elections. Following the March 2020 elections, she was appointed Minister of Aliyah and Integration, also known as Minister of Immigrant Absorption, becoming the first Ethiopia-born minister in the Israeli government.[2] She was officially sworn in on 17 May 2020.[11]

In June 2021 Tamano-Shata was awarded the Magen Begin Prize for Israeli Leadership.[12][13] After being re-appointed to her ministerial role following the 2021 elections, she resigned from the Knesset under the Norwegian Law and was replaced by Alon Tal. She was re-elected to the Knesset in the 2022 elections.[14]

Committee for the Status of Women and Gender Equality

In January 2023, she became the Chair of the Committee for the Status of Women and Gender Equality. [15] [16] During her tenure, she played a central role in hearing testimony from the survivors of the October 7 massacre. [16]

In June 2025, a hearing was led by Tamano-Shata after an investigative report was released by journalist Noam Barkan. Barkan was able to identify several women claiming similar ritual abuse and some rabbis' names were mentioned repeatedly as possible abusers. [17] One of the high-profile women claiming ritual sexual abuse was Shoshana Strook, the daughter of Orit Strook, an Israeli cabinet minister. Strook attended Knesset with other alleged victims, but she was unable to participate due to a gag order. [18] [15]

On July 27, 2025, the hearings about ritual sexual abuse continued and several women attended claiming that "doctors, educators, police officers, and both former and current Knesset members” took part.[15] Tamano-Shata advocated that Israeli Police's Lahav 105 wasn't a sufficient agency to investigate these crimes. [15] After her calls for action, the Police added a unit within the Lahav 433 National Crime Unit – which specializes in sexual offenses involving minors and digital exploitation. [19]

Her tenure ended on October 28, 2025. [16]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b All the kingmaker’s men, and women The Times of Israel, 23 January 2013
  2. ^ a b c "Israel gets first Ethiopia-born minister". BBC News. 2020-05-15. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
  3. ^ Roth-Avneri, Danielle (11 June 2020) [10 June 2020]. "'People Think I'm Militant, but Most of My Battles Stem From Love'". Israel Hayom. Retrieved 20 June 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  4. ^ Bruk, Shirit; Shohat, Yehuda (2019-02-09). "The Ethiopian babies who disappeared without a trace". Ynetnews. Retrieved 2024-06-19.
  5. ^ The people we help: Pnina Jewish Community Federation
  6. ^ Pnina Tamano-Shata: 1st female Ethiopian Israeli to make her way FJN, 23 January 2013
  7. ^ Yesh Atid Central Elections Committee
  8. ^ Yesh Atid list Central Elections Committee
  9. ^ Exchange of personalities in the 20th Knesset Knesset
  10. ^ Yesh Atid MK Peri steps down amid misconduct allegations The Times of Israel, 7 February 2018
  11. ^ Levinson, Chaim; Lis, Jonathan (17 May 2020). "After Year of Deadlock and Days of Delays, Knesset Swears in New Israeli Government". Haaretz. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  12. ^ "פרס מגן בגין למנהיגות הישראלית לשנת 2021 הוענק לשרת העלייה והקליטה, ח"כ פנינה תמנו שטה". Ministry of Immigrant Absorption (in Hebrew). 6 June 2021. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  13. ^ Brenner, Hadassah (12 June 2021). "Aliyah & Integration Minister Pnina Tamano-Shata awarded Magen Begin Prize". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  14. ^ "Knesset Member Pnina Tameno". Members of the 25th Knesset -The Knesset.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  15. ^ a b c d "Horrifying testimonies seek to lift shroud of silence around ritual sex abuse claims". Times of Israel.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  16. ^ a b c "Outgoing chair of the Committee on the Status of Women, MK Tameno Shete: "I never imagined that I would be dealing with the rights of Israeli women during our most painful period"". Israel.com.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  17. ^ "'Bottom of darkness': Children raped in ritual ceremonies expose the horrors". Israel Hayom.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  18. ^ "Facebook". December 4, 2025.
  19. ^ "Knesset hears harrowing new testimony of alleged ritual sexual abuse; survivors demand action". The Jerusalem Post.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  • Media related to Pnina Tamano-Shata at Wikimedia Commons
  • Pnina Tamano-Shata on the Knesset website
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