Arie Livne was born in 1921 in Budapest (d 2020), Hungary and spent his childhood in Novi Sad, Serbia. In late 1941, during the occupation, Arie was arrested by the Hungarian occupation forces and sent to forced labor with a group of Serbian and Jewish youth. In 1942 he was expelled with a group of Jewish youth to forced labor in a copper mine in Bor, Eastern Serbia. Arie succeeded to escape to territory controlled by the Partisans, and joined the Partisans 25th Division.
After the liberation he returned to Novi Sad where he worked in a Military Hospital. Upon friendly conversation with an old friend, he was accused of disclosing state secrets and sentenced to 10 years in prison. Arie was released after serving seven years, and most probably not before, due to his support for the Informbiro Resolution, supporting the Soviet Union stands of the time vis-à-vis the Tito's Yugoslav Communist regime. After his release, Arie worked as a manager in a film production company in Belgrade, and in 1956 immigrated to Israel.
Soon after moving to Israel, Arie began a career in the Jewish Agency where he worked until his retirement. Arie held a number of positions including the Head of the Department for Information, Deputy General Manager, G.M., and founded the National Cinema Archive, later named the Steven Spielberg Archive in Jerusalem. While performing his duties he worked with high Israeli officials.
In 1995 Mr. Livne returned to the country of his youth where he held international and regional positions in Belgrade and Pale, and later Banja Luka. He was awarded with highest honors from the Republic of Srpska, the Republic of Serbia and the city of Banja Luka, where he serves as a member of the Senate. Arie split his time between Jerusalem and in Laktaši, Republic of Srpska
Arie died in 2020, left a wife and one daughter.