Dov Shilansky (; 21 March 1924 – 9 December 2010) was an Israeli lawyer, politician and

Speaker of the Knesset The speaker of the Knesset (, ) is the presiding officer of the Knesset, the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of Israel. The Speaker also acts as President of Israel when the President is incapacitated. The current speaker is Amir Ohana, who ...

from 1988 to 1992.

Biography

Dov Shilansky (born Berelis Šilianskis) was born in

Šiauliai Šiauliai ( ; ) is a city in northern Lithuania, the List of cities in Lithuania, country's fourth largest city and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, sixth largest city in the Baltic States, with a population of 112 581 in 202 ...

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

. He survived

The Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

along with his three siblings and mother, and joined the

Irgun The Irgun (), officially the National Military Organization in the Land of Israel, often abbreviated as Etzel or IZL (), was a Zionist paramilitary organization that operated in Mandatory Palestine between 1931 and 1948. It was an offshoot of th ...

, operating as the leader of the organisation's branch in southern Italy. He made

aliyah ''Aliyah'' (, ; ''ʿălīyyā'', ) is the immigration of Jews from Jewish diaspora, the diaspora to, historically, the geographical Land of Israel or the Palestine (region), Palestine region, which is today chiefly represented by the Israel ...

in 1948, arriving in Israel on the '' Altalena'', and served as a combat officer in the

1948 Arab–Israeli War The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, also known as the First Arab–Israeli War, followed the 1947–1948 civil war in Mandatory Palestine, civil war in Mandatory Palestine as the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. The civil war becam ...

. He continued to serve as a reservist, fighting in the Six-Day and

Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was fought from 6 to 25 October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states led by Egypt and S ...

s. Between 1970 and 1974, he was an executive officer in "Haga" (Civil Defense) in Gush Dan, and until 1989 was an educational officer. In October 1952, Shilansky was arrested while attempting to bring a suitcase bomb into the Israeli Foreign Ministry. Accused of being a member of an unnamed underground organization opposed to Israeli-German reparations negotiations, he was sentenced to two years in prison.American Jewish Yearbook, Vol. 55 (1954), p.346
/ref> He gained an LL.B from the

Hebrew University of Jerusalem The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public university, public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. ...

and worked as an attorney as well as becoming a member of the Ethics Committee of the Israel Bar Association and the International Organization of Jewish Law Professionals. Shilansky died in

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...

on 9 December 2010, at the age of 86.

Political career

In 1977 he was elected to the

Knesset The Knesset ( , ) is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of Israel. The Knesset passes all laws, elects the President of Israel, president and Prime Minister of Israel, prime minister, approves the Cabinet of Israel, cabinet, and supe ...

as a member of

Likud Likud (, ), officially known as Likud – National Liberal Movement (), is a major Right-wing politics, right-wing, political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin and Ariel Sharon in an alliance with several right-wing par ...

, and was appointed the Knesset representative on the Committee for the Appointment of Judges. He was re-elected in 1981 and was made Deputy Minister in the Ministry in the Prime Minister's Office. After retaining his seat again in 1984 and then in 1988, he was appointed Speaker of the Knesset. After the 1992 elections he served as Deputy Speaker. In 1993 he was a candidate for

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

, but was defeated by

Ezer Weizman Ezer Weizman (, ; 15 June 1924 – 24 April 2005) was an Israeli major general and politician who served as the president of Israel, first elected in 1993 and re-elected in 1998. Before the presidency, Weizman was commander of the Israeli Air ...

by 66 to 53.Previous Presidential Elections
Knesset website He lost his seat in the 1996 elections, but was usually included in the ceremonial 120th slot in Likud's election lists.'Ridiculous' Likud plan would bar Sharansky, not just Feiglin
Jerusalem Post, 29 December 2005

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shilansky, Dov 1924 births 2010 deaths Deputy ministers of Israel Hebrew University of Jerusalem Faculty of Law alumni Lithuanian Holocaust survivors Irgun members Israeli government officials convicted of crimes Israeli lawyers Israeli people of Lithuanian-Jewish descent Israeli military personnel of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War Israeli people of the Six-Day War Israeli people of the Yom Kippur War Israeli politicians convicted of crimes Israeli prisoners and detainees Jewish Israeli politicians Likud politicians Lithuanian emigrants to Israel Lithuanian Jews Members of the 9th Knesset (1977–1981) Members of the 10th Knesset (1981–1984) Members of the 11th Knesset (1984–1988) Members of the 12th Knesset (1988–1992) Members of the 13th Knesset (1992–1996) People from Šiauliai People convicted on terrorism charges Prisoners and detainees of Israel Speakers of the Knesset Deputy speakers of the Knesset Candidates for President of Israel