Haaretz Photographer Ofer Vaknin Wins Photo of the Year

This photo of Avigdor Lieberman by Haaretz photographer Ofer Vaknin was named Photo of the Year at the annual Edut Mekomit (“Local Testimony”) competition and exhibition.

It was taken the day the Yisrael Beiteinu chairman presented his party’s slate for the September election.

“More than any other person, Lieberman shaped the most exceptional political year in Israel’s history,” wrote Ilan Itzhayek, one of the judges. “The man, who always worked by forging alliances and making political moves behind the scenes, burst this year onto center stage.”

Another Haaretz photographer, Rami Shllush, won a news photography award for his series of images taken of the demonstrations by the Ethiopian-Israeli immigrant community in July.

Meanwhile, a photo by Haaretz's Meged Gozani won third place in the news category. The image showed Israeli schoolchildren whose friends, aged 10 and 12, had been sent to Givon prison ahead of their deportation because their parents were living in the country illegally.