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

Speaker of the Knesset The Speaker of the Knesset ( he, יוֹשֵׁב רֹאשׁ הכנסת, Yoshev Rosh HaKnesset, Chairman of the Knesset) is the presiding officer of the Knesset, the unicameral legislature of Israel. The Speaker also acts as President of Israel whe ...

from 1988 to 1992.

Biography

Dov Shilansky (born Berelis Šilianskis) was born in

Šiauliai Šiauliai (; bat-smg, Šiaulē; german: Schaulen, ) is the fourth largest city in Lithuania, with a population of 107,086. From 1994 to 2010 it was the capital of Šiauliai County. Names Šiauliai is referred to by various names in different la ...

, Lithuania. He survived

The Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...

along with his three siblings and mother, and joined the

Irgun Irgun • Etzel , image = Irgun.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = Irgun emblem. The map shows both Mandatory Palestine and the Emirate of Transjordan, which the Irgun claimed in its entirety for a future Jewish state. The acronym "Etzel" i ...

, operating as the leader of the organisation's branch in southern Italy. He made aliyah in 1948, arriving in Israel on the ''

Altalena The ''Altalena'' Affair was a violent confrontation that took place in June 1948 by the newly created Israel Defense Forces against the Irgun (also known as IZL), one of the Jewish paramilitary groups that were in the process of merging to form ...

'', and served as a combat officer in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. 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 an armed conflict fought from October 6 to 25, 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by E ...

s. Between 1970 and 1974, he was an executive officer in "Haga" (Civil Defense) in

Gush Dan Gush Dan ( he, גּוּשׁ דָּן, ''lit.'' "Dan bloc") or Tel Aviv metropolitan area ( he, מֶטְרוֹפּוֹלִין תֵּל אָבִיב) is a conurbation in Israel, located along the country's Mediterranean coastline. There is no sing ...

, 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 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 ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the ...

on 9 December 2010, at the age of 86.

Political career

In 1977 he was elected to the

Knesset The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...

as a member of

Likud Likud ( he, הַלִּיכּוּד, HaLikud, The Consolidation), officially known as Likud – National Liberal Movement, is a major centre-right to right-wing political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin and Ariel Sha ...

, 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: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

, but was defeated by

Ezer Weizman Ezer Weizman (; he, עֵזֶר וַיצְמָן ''Ezer Vaytsman''; 15 June 1924 – 24 April 2005) was the seventh President of Israel, first elected in 1993 and re-elected in 1998. Before the presidency, Weizman was commander of the Israeli Ai ...

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 Holocaust survivors Irgun members Israeli government officials convicted of crimes Israeli lawyers Israeli people of Lithuanian-Jewish descent Israeli people of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War Israeli people of the Six-Day War Israeli people of the Yom Kippur War 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 Prisoners and detainees of Israel Speakers of the Knesset Israeli politicians convicted of crimes Deputy Speakers of the Knesset Candidates for President of Israel