Alex Dancyg | |
|---|---|
אלכס דנציג | |
 Dancyg in 2000 | |
| Born | (1948-07-21)21 July 1948 |
| Died | 9 March 2024(2024-03-09) (aged 75) |
| Awards | |
Alexander Dancyg (Hebrew:אלכס דנציג; 21 July 1948 – 9 March 2024) was a Polish-born Israeli historian,Yad Vashem Institute contributor, farmer and an active advocate of Polish-Jewish dialogue. Dancyg was a member of KibbutzNir Oz and was kidnapped byHamas militants, taken to theGaza Strip during theNir Oz attack and later killed in captivity during theSiege of Khan Yunis.
Dancyg was born inWarsaw,Poland on 21 July 1948,[1] to parents who weresurvivors of the Holocaust.[2] He was born in Warsaw as the second child of Nina (Nycha) and Marcin (Mordechai) Dancyg.[3] His father was a lawyer by profession, while his mother was a historian. His parents came from Warsaw, and spent the German occupation of World War II in the so-calledEastern Borderlands hiding under a false name: Danecki. Most of his father's family perished during the Holocaust.[4] His father, Marcin Dancyg, was aStalinist military judge inPolish People's Republic.[5]
In 1957, he and his family immigrated to Israel,[2] where he joined theLabor Zionist youth organisationHashomer Hatzair, served in theIsrael Defense Forces (IDF), including during several wars, and obtained a degree in history. He started a family on Kibbutz Nir-Oz, raising three children. In 1986, Dancyg returned to Poland for the first time in three decades and visited theAuschwitz death camp, which fuelled his interest inHolocaust education and the complicatedPolish–Jewish relations of thepost-Communist period.[6][7]
In 1990, he started working withYad Vashem, preparing tour guides chosen to accompany Israeli groups on their visits to Poland. His work at Yad Vashem also included lecturing and meeting educators and students from Poland and Israel.[8] Dancyg led a program for 120 Israeli and Polish schools to meet together during Israeli school trips to Poland.[9] He was a long-standing associate of the Yad Vashem Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Institute. Since 1990 he ran courses for guides taking care of groups of Israelis visiting Poland. He was also an associate of theGrodzka Gate – NN Theatre.[3]
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On 7 October 2023, at the start of theGaza war, Dancygwas kidnapped by Hamas militants from Kibbutz Nir-Oz. His son, Mati Dancyg, said Alex Dancyg's last communication was a text he sent to his other son, Yuval Dancyg, at approximately 8:30 am that morning, in which Dancyg told them about the situation in the kibbutz.[10] Dancyg's son and grandchildren survived the attack by hiding in their own shelter. His ex-wife also survived, by holding her missile proof shelter door shut for seven hours, protecting her and her three grandchildren.[9]
At the end of November 2023, one of the released hostages confirmed that Dancyg was alive. He was said to be regularly given medication and to be in good health. The released hostage also stated that Dancyg was giving history lectures to fellow hostages.[11]
Murals with the hashtag "StandWithAlex" were painted inWarsaw as part of a campaign to build pressure for his release.[9][12]
On 10 March 2024, reports of Danzig's death were shared byIzz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas; however, his death was not confirmed by Israeli forces or by his family.[13][14] His son said in an interview withTVN that he did not believe the news of his father's death because he "does not believe a single word Hamas says." He also added: "Until recently, I imagined every day that when he regained his freedom I would hug him tightly. I don't do that anymore. I can't. I know that if he is alive, his condition may be grave. He may not be able to walk on his own". The PolishMinistry of Foreign Affairs also released a statement that it was unable to confirm the claims of Dancyg's death at the time.[15]
On 22 July 2024, the IDF reported that Dancyg had been killed earlier in the year while being held by Hamas.[2][16][17] After the announcement,The Jerusalem Post reported that it was "likely" they had been "mistakenly killed by IDF forces during battles in Khan Yunis some months ago".[18] IDF confirmed that Dancyg died during theSiege of Khan Yunis, giving credibility to the announcement of Dancyg's death from Hamas on 9 March 2024.[19]
On 20 August 2024 the bodies of Dancyg and fellow hostagesYoram Metzger,Chaim Peri,Avraham Munder (also from Nir Oz),Yagev Buchshtab andNadav Popplewell (from kibbutzNirim) were recovered from a tunnel inKhan Younis.[20] On 22 August, Israel announced that bullet wounds had been found in the bodies of all six hostages, claiming that they had been probably shot by their guards to prevent a rescue during fighting in Khan Younis earlier in the year.[21]
Dancyg described himself as asocialist.[22] He was a staunch supporter ofkibbutzim, which he regarded as an example of successful socialist communities. Remarking on his life in kibbutzes, Dancyg said: "I can live a peaceful, good, normal life without any stress. I have everything I need and my children also have everything they need, because the kibbutz is a rich society and can share equally for everyone, not equally to the centimetre, because that's not the point."[23]
Described as an "idealistic kibbutznik and a flesh-and-blood socialist", Dancyg was an opponent of nationalism, and was known for his sharp critique of the Israeli right as well asPolish anti-Jewish phobias.[22] Dancyg also participated in debates on religion, describing it as "a mystery that we cannot solve when we talk about the origin of the world and man."[24] Dancyg had respect for theCatholic Church, and was a close friend of Polish priest and theologianAlfred Wierzbicki. When discussing religion, he was said to provocatively joke: "You, such an intelligent guy, and you haven't become a Jew yet!"[22]
In 1999, a biographical documentary film devoted to Alex Dancyg was made, titledReading Sienkiewicz in the Negev Desert. Directed byKrzysztof Bukowski, it received the "Bronze Hobby-Horse" Special Award at theNational Short Film Festival in Kraków in 2000.[25]
A Polish Radio reportage devoted to him, byMarta Rebzda, entitled Double Identity, was published in 2012.[26]
In 2014, the Grodzka Gate - NN Theatre Centre published the second volume in the series Tales from the Gate entitled Dancyg (Lublin, ISBN 978-83-61064-57-2) containing a transcript of interviews with Alex Dancyg recorded as part of the Oral History Programme.[27]
In 2013, the Chapter of thePolcul Foundation awarded him the Eudoxja Rakowska Prize for "his long-standing activity for the historical education of Israeli and Polish youth".[28] In 2023, when he was held hostage by Hamas, he was awarded the title "Man of Reconciliation" by thePolish Council of Christians and Jews.[29]
Dancyg received several awards, including theMedal of the Commission of National Education – the highest honor from the Polish Education Ministry – and theSilver Cross of Merit from the then-president of Poland, the lateLech Kaczyński.[8][9] In 2024, he won theJan Karski Eagle Special Award.[30]
