Yehezkel Zakai (; 24 April 1932 – 31 March 2021) was an Israeli politician who served as a member of 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 ...

for the

Alignment Alignment may refer to: Archaeology * Alignment (archaeology), a co-linear arrangement of features or structures with external landmarks * Stone alignment, a linear arrangement of upright, parallel megalithic standing stones Biology * Structu ...

between 1977 and 1984.

Biography

Born in

Kurdistan Kurdistan ( ku, کوردستان ,Kurdistan ; lit. "land of the Kurds") or Greater Kurdistan is a roughly defined geo-cultural territory in Western Asia wherein the Kurds form a prominent majority population and the Kurdish culture, Kurdish la ...

in Iraq in 1932, Zakai made

aliyah Aliyah (, ; he, עֲלִיָּה ''ʿălīyyā'', ) is the immigration of Jews from Jewish diaspora, the diaspora to, historically, the geographical Land of Israel, which is in the modern era chiefly represented by the Israel, State of Israel ...

to Israel in 1950. He joined moshav

Azaria Azaria ( he, עֲזַרְיָה), or Azarya is a moshav in central Israel. Located in the Shephelah around five kilometres south-east of Ramle, it falls under the jurisdiction of Gezer Regional Council. In it had a population of . Etymology ...

, and served as its secretary from 1952 until 1953. Between 1954 and 1963 he worked as a guide in the hill settlements. Having become the Organisation Director for the moshavim near

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

, in 1974 he became deputy secretary-general of the Moshavim Movement. He was secretary of the moshav constituency in the Labor Party, and was elected to the Knesset in

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

on the Alignment list (an alliance of Labor and

Mapam Mapam ( he, מַפָּ״ם, an acronym for , ) was a left-wing political party in Israel. The party is one of the ancestors of the modern-day Meretz party. History Mapam was formed by a January 1948 merger of the kibbutz-based Hashomer Hatz ...

). He was re-elected in

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

, but lost his seat in the 1984 elections. In 1984 he became director general of

Mekorot Mekorot ( he, מקורות, lit. "Sources") is the national water company of Israel and the country's top agency for water management. Founded in 1937, it supplies Israel with 90% of its drinking water and operates a cross-country water supply ne ...

.Yehezkel Zackay: Public Activities
Knesset website

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zakai, Yehezkel 1932 births 2021 deaths Kurdish Jews Iraqi Jews Iraqi emigrants to Israel Alignment (Israel) politicians Israeli people of Kurdish-Jewish descent Members of the 9th Knesset (1977–1981) Members of the 10th Knesset (1981–1984)