Having served as Israel’s envoy to the UN from 2015 to 2020, this will be Danon’s second stint at the UN.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Affairs Minister Israel Katz have appointed Danny Danon as the next ambassador to the United Nations.
Danon, a Likud party member of the Knesset (Israeli parliament) will replace Gilad Erdan, whose term has ended.
“Danon has extensive experience in the international arena and there is no doubt that his talents and experience will find expression at this time,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement on Sunday.
“The appointment will be submitted for Government approval after which Ambassador-designate Danon will begin his second term as Israeli Ambassador to the UN.”
Having served as Israel’s envoy to the UN from 2015 to 2020, this will be Danon’s second stint at the UN.
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Last November, Danon and another politician sparked controversy by urging the international community to take in Palestinian refugees from the Gaza Strip amid Israel’s deadly offensive on the besieged enclave. Arab foreign minister categorically rejected and condemned his call.
Danon, 53, is a senior member of the Knesset and the chairman of World Likud, an international wing of the homegrown Israeli party, according to its website.
He was first elected to the Knesset in 2009 and served as Deputy Defence Minister during the 2014 war on Gaza dubbed Operation Protective Edge. Netanyahu fired Danon over his public criticism of the government’s acceptance of a ceasefire with Hamas at the time, according to The Times of Israel.
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In 2015, he took up the Minister of Science, Technology and Space position.
With a bachelor’s degree in international affairs from the Florida International University and a master’s degree in public policy from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Danon served in the Israeli military from 1994 to 1996.
‘One Israeli State’
According to the Jewish Virtual Library website, Danon said in an August 2011 interview with Timor Nabili on Al Jazeera English, “There is place only for one state on the land of Israel… I do not believe in a two-state solution.”
Danon is an advisory board member for The Genesis Prize, which is “an annual $1 million award that honors living Jewish individuals who have attained international renown in their chosen professional fields, are proud of their Jewish heritage, care about the future of the Jewish people and the State of Israel, and inspire young people to make the world a better place.”
The website states that “With over twenty years of experience representing Israel overseas and within the public sector, Ambassador Danon has developed a reputation as one of Israel’s most ardent defenders.”
‘For Israeli People’s Sake’
Danon said on X on Sunday “Since the beginning of the Iron Swords War, I have been fighting to defend Israel’s position in the world in a variety of ways.”
Last week he hosted former US ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, for a visit to Israel, he said, “an important visit that joined the tours of many leaders from the world who came here at my invitation since October 7th.”
מתחילת מלחמת חרבות ברזל אני נאבק להגן על עמדתה של ישראל בעולם במגוון דרכים. בשבוע שעבר אירחתי לביקור בישראל את ניקי היילי, ביקור חשוב שהצטרף לסיורים של מנהיגים רבים מהעולם שהגיעו לכאן בהזמנתי מאז ה-7 לאוקטובר.
בשעה שמדינת ישראל נלחמת במספר רב של חזיתות, על כל אחד מאיתנו לעשות…
— Danny Danon 🇮🇱 דני דנון (@dannydanon) June 9, 2024
He said that at a time when Israel “is fighting on a large number of fronts, on a large number of fronts, each of us must do the best within our skills and experience.”
“This is how I acted in the past and this is how I will continue to act in the future…I am obliged to present the truth with my head held high for the sake of the people of Israel and our common future here.”
(The Palestine Chronicle)
