Born in the Mandate of Palestine, Tamir joined the British Army as part of the Jewish Brigade, serving in World War II, and became a commanding officer in the Haganah.

1955) in Islamic studies at the Open University of Israel,[13][14] and Gideon as principal of the Talmud Torah school in Beit She'an.

[18][21] Actor and illustrator Chaim Topol, whom Tamir had recruited to work for the IDF planning branch, was the best man at their wedding.

"[26] During the Israel-Palestine war, Tamir was severely injured in the battle at Gush Etzion, and a bullet that became lodged inside his body was never removed.

He was the last commander left defending Gush Etzion during the siege, as Moshe Silberschmidt's deputy, ultimately being captured by Jordanians of the Arab Legion.

[28] In c.1950, under a Ben-Gurion policy to prevent Arab refugees in Jordan from returning, Tamir commanded an attack demolishing all abandoned villages that had not yet been settled by Israelis.

[29] While recovering from his capture and injuries, Tamir wrote a book about his experiences at Etzion, Witness to Battle, which was published in 1949.

The article quotes Tamir as having written: "The plans were more or less mine... To put it simply, if war broke out, whoever did not flee to Jordan would be evacuated to concentration camps in the rear; they wouldn't stay on the border.

He and Amos Horev accompanied Shlomo Goren to Bethlehem to search for the Tomb of Rachel on his mission to capture holy sites.

Reuniting in Hebron, the pair then helped Goren to break the gates at the Cave of the Patriarchs; inside the temple the three were told that the mayor wished to surrender, and left for the town hall.

In 1974, he founded the IDF Strategic and Policy Planning Branch,[5] at the end of the Yom Kippur War, and served as its head.

In view of his experience in the talks that preceded the disengagement agreements of 1973 and his preparatory work well before anyone dreamed that peace was on the horizon, he became part of the echelon entrusted with launching initiatives.

[27] As a civilian he drafted the platform of Weizman's new political party Yahad; he did not plan to become a professional politician, and did not run for the Knesset.

"[7] Though he did not enter the Knesset, Tamir stayed in political life; he first became the director-general of the Prime Minister's Office under Peres.

[39] In 1985, pursuing peace with Hussein of Jordan, Peres proposed to him throwing out previous talks of two decades and discussing a radical new plan.

[38] In his Foreign Ministry role, Tamir held talks in 1987 with Alexander Belonogov, the USSR's ambassador to the UN, regarding improving relations between the two nations, particularly on the matter of Russian Jews being allowed to emigrate to Israel.

[5] Tamir long supported some form of an independent Palestinian state, and was "one of the first Israeli officials" to meet with Yasser Arafat.

In a 1999 interview with Ze'ev Schiff, Tamir said that he and Arafat discussed Israel's views on peace and national security.

[5] A review for his autobiographical military strategy book, A Soldier in Search of Peace, published in International Affairs, said:[6] His admirers say that he has one of the best analytical brains in Israel; his detractors say that his self-confidence bordered on arrogance, and that, as a staff officer/aide, he had no convictions of his own.