Dani Dayan | |
|---|---|
דני דיין | |
 Dayan in 2006 | |
| Diplomatic roles | |
| 2016–2020 | Consul general to the United States |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1955-11-29)29 November 1955 (age 69) Buenos Aires,Argentina |
| Nationality | Israeli |
| Relatives | Ilana Dayan(cousin) |
| Alma mater | Bar Ilan University Tel Aviv University |
| Occupation | Yad Vashem Chairman |
Dani Dayan (Hebrew:דני דיין; born 29 November 1955) is anArgentine-born Israeli diplomat and entrepreneur. He is chairman ofYad Vashem.[1]
Daniel (Dani) Dayan was born inBuenos Aires,Argentina.[2] He and his family immigrated to Israel in 1971, when he was 15,[2] settling in theTel Aviv neighborhood ofYad Eliyahu.[3] Dayan spent 7.5 years in the Israeli Army.[2]
Dayan holds a B.Sc. in Economics and Computer Science fromBar Ilan University, and an M.Sc. in Finance from theTel Aviv University. He is aMajor (Res.) in theIsrael Defense Forces. He lives inMa'ale Shomron.
Dayan is married to Einat Dayan, a former political activist who worked as the director of strategy, marketing, and sales atAriel University. Their daughter Ofir served in theIDF Spokesperson's Unit, studied atColumbia University and is a research assistant in the Diane and Guilford Glazer Israel-China Policy Center at the IsraeliInstitute for National Security Studies.[4] His father, Moshe, a second cousin of GeneralMoshe Dayan, was the Israeli ambassador to Guatemala in the early 1980s.[5]
In 1982, Dayan established aninformation technology firm "Elad Systems" based inTel Aviv. He served first asCEO and later as chairman of the board. Elad Systems became one of the leading information technology firms in Israel, specializing in tailor-madesoftware development,facility management andsoftware package. In 2004, when he sold his interests in the company, Elad Systems employed over 500 professionals.
Dayan was the Secretary-General of theTehiya political party, and was a candidate to theKnesset on its list in the Israeli legislative elections in1988 and1992.
Dayan was a member on the executive committee of theYesha Council for eight years, before being elected as chairman on July 13, 2007.[6] Following his election, Dayan began transforming the council into an effective political lobby, modeled onAmerican political lobbies. Dayan resigned in 2013, but at the same time created a new post for himself as the foreign envoy of the Yesha Council.[2] In the2021 Israeli legislative election, Dayan was placed on the eleventh spot of theNew Hope Party List.[7]
His writing appears in many publications, includingThe New York Times,[8]TheLos Angeles Times,[9]The Boston Globe,[10]USA Today,[11]The Guardian,[12]Breitbart,[13]Haaretz,[14]The Times of Israel[15] andThe Jerusalem Post.
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In 2015 Dayan was appointed by Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu to be the Israeli ambassador toBrazil. The Brazilian government delayed its approval of Dayan's appointment over months, sparking a diplomatic crisis between the countries. His appointment was opposed by leftist sectors of the political coalition governing Brazil, as well as social movements.[16] In January 2016, 40 retired Brazilian ambassadors from all political spheres released a manifesto supporting the Brazilian government.[17] Brazil's reluctance to approve Dayan as Israel's Ambassador developed into a diplomatic rift between the two countries. The standoff continued until March 2016, when Israel assigned Dayan asConsul General of Israel in New York instead.[18]Dayan served as Consul General of Israel in New York from August 2016 until August 2020. He represented Israel to 5 states:New York,New Jersey,Pennsylvania,Delaware andOhio. His term as Consul General is widely considered as very successful. Dayan managed to develop close relations with all sectors of thecivil society and the Jewish community.
Dayan was appointed as Chairman of Yad Vashem in August 2021. As chairman of Yad Vashem, Dayan cited Holocaust distortion promoted by governments around the world as a serious problem: He says these governments admit that the Holocaust happened, but their countrymen did nothing wrong.[19]
