Born Yisrael Gurfinkel in Hiriseni, Bessarabia, Guri was educated in a heder and a high school in Chisinäu, where he was a member of Tzeiri Zion, before atten- ding the University of Odessa. In Odessa he became secretary of the local branch of the Jewish National Fund and of the Urban Zionist Committee. He made aliyah to Palestine in 1919, and was a member of Hapoel Hatzair. Bet- ween 1922 and 1931 he was a member of Tel Aviv Workers Council. He served as a member of the Assembly of Representatives, and was secretary of the Central Controller Committee of the Histadrut trade union. In 1929 he became a member of Tel Aviv City Council, a role heretained until 1950, and in 1935 became a member of its Cultural Department. In 1949 he was elected to the first Knesset on the Mapai list. He was re-elected in 1951, 1955, 1959 and 1961 He was one of the most balanced politicians of his period, being demanding of himself, as well as of his colleagues. He maintained the line between criticism of the activity and the damage to human dignity, he was also among those who expressed their gratitude for a job well done. In 1951 - 1965 - chairman of the Finance Committee of the Knesset. The name Guri is astreet in T'el Aviv. His son is the famous Israeli poet and journalist Haim Guri (1923-2018).