Dani Dayan
Dani Dayan (Hebrew: דני דיין); Born in 1955 in Buenos Aires, Argentina) is an Israeli Political Activist who served as the Chairman of the Yesha Council from 2007 - 2013.
Dayan and his family emigrated to Israel in 1971, when he was 15, settling in the Tel Aviv neighborhood of Yad Eliyahu.
He holds a B.Sc in Economics and Computer Science from Bar Ilan University and an M.Sc in Finance from the Tel Aviv University. He is a Major (Res.) in the IDF.
In 1982, Dayan established an information technology firm "Elad Systems", which he headed, first as CEO and later as Chairman, until 2005, when he sold his interests in the company. He continues to invest in high-tech companies and serves as a lecturer at Ariel University.
Dayan was the Secretary-General of the Tehiya political party and was a candidate to the Knesset on its list in the Israeli legislative elections in 1988 and 1992.
In 2004, he sold his software company and entered into settlement politics.
In 2009 he was offered a spot on The Jewish Home's list, but declined.
He was a member on the Executive Committee of the Yesha Council for 8 years, before being elected as Chairman on July 13, 2007.
As Chairman he led the Settlers' struggle against the Settlement freeze in 2010.
Dayan was elected chairman of the Yesha Council in July 2007. The Yesha Council is a political lobby for the Israeli settler movement. The organization's mandate is to provide support to Israeli settlements in ways such as helping them acquire bulletproof ambulances and buses, and lobbying the government to provide basic utilities to settlements.
Following his election, Dayan began transforming the council into an effective political lobby, modeled on American political lobbies.
Despite being a key figure in the largely religious settlement movement, Dayan is secular. He opposes a two-state solution, and believes that holding onto the West Bank is in Israel's best interest. He currently lives in the West Bank settlement of Ma'ale Shomron.
He is a cousin of TV celebrity Ilana Dayan.
External links
- "THE MAN WHO STOPPED THE FREEZE"/ Moment Magazine, January/February 2011