reestablished contact with the family after Sharon's stroke. Sharon's sister has rarely been mentioned in biographies of him: he himself rarely acknowledged her and only mentioned her twice in his autobiography. Legacy A hugely consequential figure, Sharon remains a highly polarizing one too. While generally considered a great general and statesman among Israelis, Palestinians and some international observers revile Sharon as a war criminal. Human Rights Watch have contended that Sharon should have been held criminally accountable for his role in the Sabra and Shatila massacre, and other abuses. The Ariel Sharon Park, an environmental park near Tel Aviv, is named for him. In the Negev desert, the IDF is currently building its city of training bases, Camp Ariel Sharon. In total, a NIS 50 billion project, the city of bases is named after Ariel Sharon, the largest active construction project in Israel, it is to become the largest IDF base in Israel. Overview of offices held Sharon served as prime minister (Israel's head of government) from 7 March 2001 through 14 April 2006 (with Ehud Olmert serving as acting prime minister beginning 4 January 2006, after Sharon slipped into a coma). As prime minister he led the 12th government during the 15th Knesset and the 13th government during the 16th Knesset. Sharon served in the Knesset, first for several months in 1973, and later from 1977 through 2006. Sharon. From July 1999 through July 2000, Sharon served as the unofficial/honorary Knesset's opposition leader. Thereafter, from July 2000 through March 2001, he served as the first official designated Knesset opposition leader. Sharon was the leader of the Shlomtzion party from its 1976 founding until its 1977 merger into Likud. Sharon served as leader of the Likud party from 1999 through 2005, leaving to create Kadima which he led from 2005 through early 2006 (when he fell into a coma). In addition to these positions and his ministerial roles, Sharon also served as a special aide to Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin from June 1975 through March 1976. Ministerial posts Electoral history 2001 direct election for Prime Minister Party leadership elections References Further reading Ben Shaul, Moshe (editor); Generals of Israel, Tel-Aviv: Hadar Publishing House, Ltd., 1968. Uri Dan; Ariel Sharon: An Intimate Portrait, Palgrave Macmillan, October 2006, 320 pages. . Ariel Sharon, with David Chanoff; Warrior: The Autobiography of Ariel Sharon, Simon & Schuster, 2001, . Gilad Sharon, (translated by Mitch