Yossi Dagan

Yossi Dagan (Hebrew: יוסי דגן) Israeli grassroots community organizer[1] is a leader of Homesh First, a grassroots organization dedicated to re-settling and re-building Homesh.[2] Homesh First was formed after the homes of the Jewish residents of Homesh were razed and the Jewish community was evicted as part of Israel's disengagement in August 2005.[3] Dagan himself was a resident of Sanur, which was also demolished and evacuated as part of the 2005 disengagement plan.[4] He is married, and father to three small children. He lives in Shavi Shomron, a Jewish town or settlement to the west of Shechem/Nablus. He has a master's degree in Law, and is an officer in the IDF reserves.[4] In August 2015, Dagan was elected as Head of the Shomron Regional Council, replacing Gershon Mesika, who resigned from his post following involvement in the Yisrael Beteynu scandal.[5] He received the support of 63% of the voters in general elections that were held for the Shomron Regional Municipal government on Aug. 6, 2015.[6]

Political activism

Dagan was active in actions of civil disobedience as a method of protesting the Disengagement Plan. Dagan helped to organize the 2007 Yom Ha'atzmaut march to Homesh. During Sukkot of the same year, Dagan organized a pilgrimage to Homesh. Many former residents and sympathetic Israelis camped out on the grounds where Homesh houses were demolished.[7] The Christian Science Monitor quoted Dagan as warning against the disengagement: "You'll be creating a terror state that would threaten most of the country with Qassam [missiles]."[8]

In 2013, Dagan helped to spearhead a public relations campaign focused on welcoming Israelis to the West Bank. Dagan hoped to counter what he said were "radical left-wing Israeli groups" that promote hatred against settlements in Israel and Europe.[9]

In January 2015, he became involved in an international incident between the U.S State Department and Israel. In January 2015, Jewish settlers at the "Adei Ad illegal outpost" [10] threw stones at diplomats from a U.S. delegation who had arrived to inspect vandalism reported at a grove of Palestinian-owned trees in the occupied West Bank. It was reported that recently, settlers were suspected of uprooting thousands of olive tree saplings, some of which had been planted in honor of senior Palestinian official Ziad Abu Ein, who collapsed and died after an altercation with an Israeli soldier. The American consulate came to inspect the grove because some of the land owners claim U.S. citizenship.[11][12] No injuries were reported.[13] A U.S. State Department spokesman, Jeff Rathke, said, “We can confirm a vehicle from the Consulate General was pelted with stones and confronted by a group of armed settlers today in the West Bank, near the Palestinian village of Turmus Ayya.” He added that the U.S. is "deeply concerned" about the attack, and that the Israeli authorities recognize "the seriousness of the incident".[14] A police spokeswoman said the police were investigating the incident, and no arrests had been made.[15] The U.S. State Department has offered the Israeli authorities a videotape of the incident showing no American drew weapons. Yossi Dagan, in his role as Head of the Shomron Regional Council, urged Interior Minister Gilad Erdan to expel the American delegation, claiming they were spies.[16]

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://www.ourjerusalem.com/news/story/two-years-after-disengagement-yeshiva-opens-in-homesh.html
  2. ↑ Two years after disengagement yeshiva opens in Homesh
  3. ↑ http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2987468&CMP=OTC-RSSFeeds0312
  4. 1 2 "Profile of Municipal Head". Shomron Regional Council Website.
  5. ↑ "Arutz 7: Gershon Mesika Resigns as Samaria Regional Council Head".
  6. ↑ "Israel's Ministry of Interior: Results of Special Elections Aug. 6 2015" (PDF).
  7. ↑ http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/870283.html
  8. ↑
  9. ↑ 'Settlers PR offensive' (23 Oct 2013) Alternative News" http://alternativenews.org/archive/index.php/politics/israeli-sosaciety/7236-settlers-pr-offensive
  10. ↑ "Chaim Levinson 'Settlers throw stones at U.S. consulate convoy in West Bank' (2 Jan 2015) Haaretz" http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/.premium-1.635066
  11. ↑ "Dan Williams 'American Diplomatic Convoy Stoned by Jewish Settlers on West Bank' The Jewish Daily Forward (2 Jan 2015)"http://forward.com/articles/211997/american-diplomatic-convoy-stoned-by-jewish-settle/
  12. ↑ "Peter Beaumont 'Israeli settlers stone two cars belonging to US consulate staff' (1 Jan 2015) The Guardian" http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/02/israeli-settlers-stone-two-cars-us-consulate-staff
  13. ↑ "Israeli settlers in stone-throwing confrontation with US diplomats". The Daily Telegraph. 2 January 2015.
  14. ↑ 'US ‘deeply concerned’ by settler attack on consulate staff' (2 Jan 2015) Times of Israel" http://www.timesofisrael.com/us-deeply-concerned-by-settlers-throwing-stones-at-consulate-staff/
  15. ↑ "'Israeli Settlers Threw Stones at U.S. Diplomats' Cars' (2 Jan 2015) Newsweek" http://www.newsweek.com/israeli-settlers-threw-stones-us-diplomats-cars-296332
  16. ↑ "Itamar Eichner 'US embassy: Diplomats did not pull guns on settlers' (3 Jan 2015) YNET" http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4610866,00.html
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