Garry Kasparov. Photo: The Kasparov Agency / Wikimedia Commons

Garry Kasparov

Human rights activist

Garry Kasparov, a Russian chess Grandmaster considered by many to be the greatest player of all time, is also a Russian pro-democracy leader, global human-rights activist and author.

Kasparov, also chairman of the New York-based Human Rights Foundation, writes frequently about world affairs, and is an avid defender of Israel. In a recent New York Daily News opinion piece on Russia, Syria and Iran, he states, “And what of Israel? Is America ready to leave its one devoted ally in the region to its fate alone?”