[1][2] Ilan Ben-Dov was born in Tel Aviv, Israel in 1959.
A Rothschild Scholarship recipient, he received his BA in Political Science, Sociology and Anthropology from Bar-Ilan University and earned his master's degree in International Relations from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
In 1990-1995, Ben-Dov was responsible for public diplomacy at the Israeli Embassy in Germany.
At the Israeli Embassy in Vienna, Austria, Ben-Dov started as Deputy Head of Mission and later served as Chargé d'affaires.
[4][5] At the Ministry of Affairs in Jerusalem Ben-Dov has held several senior positions, most recently as the Director of the Central European Department.