Education Minister Yoav Kisch (Likud), has made it clear he intends to remove Dani Dayan from his post as chairman of Yad Vashem, igniting a firestorm of controversy, according to a number of reports in the Israeli media.
This move is steeped in Kisch’s accusations of “unauthorized parties [voting] at meetings of the Yad Vashem board,” with claims that board members not “duly appointed and… approved by the committee for reviewing appointments,” such as former MKs Colette Avital, Shai Piron, and Shuli Mualem, have been participating.
Kisch’s outspoken stance challenges the legitimacy of decisions made under Dayan’s stewardship. He emphasized that “the participation and votes of unauthorized parties in Yad Vashem management meetings constitute a serious omission by Dani Dayan.” Further deepening the rift, Kisch pointed out that he and the director general of the Education Ministry, “who are also members of the Yad Vashem board, were never invited to the board meetings.”
Dayan, with political connections to MK Gideon Sa’ar, Chairman of the New Hope Party, and a history as a candidate in the New Hope Party, responded firmly to the accusations, asserting that “some of them are unfounded and others are false.”
EDUCATION MINISTER Yoav Kisch attends a meeting of the Knesset Education Committee, earlier this month. (credit: YONATAN SINDEL/FLASH90)Rising in Dayan’s defense, Sa’ar took to Twitter, articulating: “The intention to oust Dani Dayan from the position of chairman of ‘Yad Vashem’ is illegal, full of extraneous considerations and mainly harms this important and sacred national institution… He fulfills his role in a distinctly state-like manner. It is forbidden for ‘Yad Vashem’ to enter Netanyahu’s vindictive clearing house!”
Who is Dani Dayan?
Born in Argentina, Dayan is an Israeli entrepreneur, diplomat and politician. He served as the Consul General of Israel in New York in 2016 for an extended term and became the chairman of Yad Vashem in August 2021. Dayan is known for his advocacy for Israeli settlements in Judea and Samaria and held the position of Chairman of the Yesha Council from 2007 to 2013.
After endorsing Benjamin Netanyahu for Prime Minister in 2013, he was appointed Chief Foreign Envoy of the Yesha Council, representing the Israeli settlement movement internationally. Following a diplomatic contention regarding his ambassadorial appointment to Brazil, Israel reassigned Dayan as Consul General in New York.
Dayan was considered to be a highly appreciated diplomat during his years in New York. Despite concerns that he would be political, due to his past positions, he work in a highly diplomatic manner. Dayan was popular among both conservative and liberal Jewish organizations and leaders. He also did extensive outreach work to the Hispanic communities in the US.
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