Nino Abesadze

Nino Abesadze
Born	(1965-04-12) April 12, 1965 Tbilisi, Soviet Union (now Georgia)
Occupation(s)	Journalist, politician, tour guide
Years active	1988–present
Known for	Member of the Knesset for Kadima (2009–2013)

Nino Abesadze (; ; born 12 April 1965) is an Israeli journalist and political figure who represented Kadima in the Knesset between 2009 and 2013.

Biography

Abesadze was born in Tbilisi, then part of the Soviet Union (present-day Georgia), to a father of Georgian Christian heritage and a mother of Russian-Jewish origin. She completed her studies at the Film School of the Open University of Georgia and obtained academic qualifications in Russian literature and linguistics from Tbilisi State University. At age 23, she commenced her career with Georgian State Television, advancing to the role of evening news anchor within two years.

Following her father's passing in 1980, her mother and sisters relocated to Israel, initially living in Rehovot before moving to Ashdod. Abesadze remained in Georgia, where during the 1990s she developed a relationship with Baruch Ben-Neria, who served as Israel’s ambassador to Georgia and Armenia from 1993 to 1996. She later immigrated to Israel in 1996, contributing to Russian-language broadcasts on Channel 33 and subsequently working for a Russian-language newspaper.

Although included on Kadima’s candidate list during the 2009 elections, Abesadze did not secure a seat initially. She entered the Knesset on 9 November 2010, filling the vacancy left by Tzachi Hanegbi, who was disqualified following a perjury conviction related to moral turpitude.

Prior to the 2013 elections, Abesadze switched allegiance from Kadima to the Labor Party. Positioned nineteenth on Labor’s electoral list, she lost her parliamentary seat when the party obtained only fifteen mandates.

Currently, she resides in Kokhav Ya'ir with her partner and two children. Professionally, she works as a tour guide specializing in excursions to Georgia.