Uzzi Ornan (Hebrew: עוזי אורנן; ISO 259-3: ˁuzzi ˀornan; 7 June 1923 – 3 November 2022)[1] was an Israeli linguist and social activist.

Ornan was a member of the Israeli Canaanite movement, founded by his brother Yonatan Ratosh.

[2] He was the founder of the League against religious coercion in Israel and an active supporter of the separation of church and state.

Subsequently, he was deported to and imprisoned in British prison camps in Eritrea, Sudan and Kenya, where he was held until the Israeli Declaration of Independence in 1948.

His remarks about religious coercion have led to complaints from Knesset members and human rights groups to incite violence.

[3][4] On another occasion Ornan said to a religious Knesset member Nissim Zeev during a talk show: "You should be thrown into the sea, and all your schools should be closed".