(http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/121126-barak-215a.photoblog600.jpg)Nir Elias / ReutersIsrael's Defence Minister Ehud Barak announced his resignation from politics at a news conference in Tel Aviv on Monday. A former prime minister, he has served as defense minister since 2007.By NBC News staff and wire reportsJERUSALEM - Defense Minister Ehud Barak, a main architect of Israel's policy toward Iran's nuclear program, said in a surprise announcement on Monday that he was quitting politics and would not run in the Jan. 22 national election.
"I have decided to retire from political life and not to run for the next Knesset ... I will end my term as defense minister once the next government is established, in about three months," he told a news conference.
Follow @NBCNewsWorld (http://twitter.com/NBCNewsWorld)"I want to dedicate more time to my family. I feel I have exhausted dealing with political life, which has never been a passion of mine, and I feel there is room to allow other people to serve in senior roles in Israel," he said.
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