Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs

Dan Diker, Senior Fellow and longtime Director of the Counter-Political Warfare Project at the Jerusalem Center, is former Secretary-General of the World Jewish Congress and Research Fellow of the International Institute for Counter Terrorism at Reichman University (formerly IDC, Herzliya). He has written six books exposing the “apartheid antisemitism” phenomenon in North America, and has authored studies on Iran’s race for regional supremacy and Israel’s need for defensible borders. Publications by Dan Diker

Yechiel Leiter has served in senior government positions in education, finance, and transportation. He previously served as Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in his former role as Minister of Finance. He also served as Associate Director General of Israel’s Ministry of Education. He has been a scholar at the Jerusalem Center, the Herzl Institute, and the Kohelet Policy Forum. He received his doctorate in political philosophy from the University of Haifa, and his post-doctorate study of John Locke and the Hebrew Bible was published by Cambridge University Press. Publications by Dr. Yechiel Leiter

Khaled Abu Toameh is an awarding-winning Israeli Arab journalist, lecturer, and documentary filmmaker who covers Palestinian affairs for the Jerusalem Post. A Senior Distinguished Fellow at the Gatestone Institute, he has also worked as a senior producer for NBC in the Middle East and has reported on events in the West Bank and Gaza for several media outlets. Publications by Khaled Abu Toameh

Amb. Alan Baker, Director of the Institute for Diplomatic Affairs at the Jerusalem Center, served as Legal Adviser and Deputy Director-General of Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and as Israel’s Ambassador to Canada. He participated in the negotiation and drafting of the Oslo Accords with the Palestinians, as well as agreements and peace treaties with Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon. Publications by Alan Baker

For over twenty-five years, Aviram Bellaishe served in senior government positions as a business intelligence and Middle East specialist, negotiation expert, and international cooperation manager. Aviram was an Israeli director in a regional initiative for business and economic cooperation dialogue in the regions of the Middle East and North Africa, and is presently a member of the executive committee of MENA 2050.

Lenny Ben David served as Deputy Chief of Mission in Israel’s Embassy in Washington, D.C. (1997-2000). Previously, he served for 25 years at AIPAC, including as the Director of AIPAC’s Israel office. He is a photographic historian of the Middle East, and the author of AIPAC’s groundbreaking Myths and Facts and the recent American Interests in the Holy Land. Publications by Lenny Ben-David

Yoni Ben Menachem, a Senior Researcher at the Jerusalem Center, is a veteran Arab affairs and diplomatic commentator for Israel Radio and Television. He served as Director General and Chief Editor of the Israel Broadcasting Authority. Publications by Yoni Ben Menachem

Ambassador Freddy Eytan, a former Foreign Ministry senior advisor who served in Israel’s embassies in Paris and Brussels, was Israel’s first Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Mauritania. He was also the spokesman of the Israeli delegation in the peace process with the Palestinians. Since 2007, he heads the Israel-Europe Project at the Jerusalem Center, which focuses on analyzing Israeli relations with the countries of Europe and seeks to develop ties and avenues of bilateral cooperation. He is also the director of Le Cape, the Jerusalem Center website in French. Amb. Eytan has written 25 books about the Israeli-Arab conflict and the policy of France in the Middle East, including La Poudriere (The Powder Keg) and Le double jeu (the Double Game). He has also published biographies of Shimon Peres, Ariel Sharon, Benjamin Netanyahu, and a book, The 18 Who Built Israel Publications by Freddy Eytan.

Jason Greenblatt served as Assistant to the U.S. President and Special Representative for International Negotiations (2017-2019). He played a key role in developing the Abraham Accords, signed in 2020, that saw Israel normalize relations with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco, and helped formulate President Donald Trump’s Middle East peace plan.

Yoseph Haddad served as a commander in the IDF’s elite Golani brigade. Haddad has led a global campaign to expose and educate parliaments and government leaders on the dangers of BDS and “apartheid antisemitism.” He serves as a bridge in Jewish-Arab relations in Israel. He is a regular commentator on Israeli TV in English, Hebrew and Arabic, and received the Ministry of Foreign Affairs 2021 “Light of Israel” award.

Lt. Col. (ret.) Jonathan D. Halevi is a senior researcher of the Middle East and radical Islam at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. He is a co-founder of the Orient Research Group Ltd. Publications by Jonathan D. Halevi

Pinhas Inbari, a Senior Researcher at the Jerusalem Center, is a leading Palestinian and Middle East affairs scholar who serves as a commentator for several foreign media outlets. He served as a Middle East adviser to Israel’s Ministry of Strategic Affairs and has authored several books on the Palestinian issue. Publications by Pinhas Inbari

Lorena Khatib, an Israeli Druze diplomat, is the chief Arabic Content Officer in the Department of Digital Diplomacy at the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Brig.-Gen. (res.) Yossi Kuperwasser was formerly Director-General of the Israel Ministry of Strategic Affairs and head of the Research Division of IDF Military Intelligence. Publications by Yossi Kuperwasser

Yahya Mahamid is an Israeli Arab speaker, educator and activist, working to empower and integrate youth from Israel’s Arab minority into Israeli society. He volunteered to serve as a combat infantry soldier in the IDF and has since worked to educate others about antisemitism and Israel.

Col. (ret.) Dr. Jacques Neriah, a regular contributor to the Jerusalem Center’s blog on the upheavals in the Arab world, was formerly Foreign Policy Advisor to Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Deputy Head for Assessment of Israeli Military Intelligence.  Publications by Jacques Neriah

Fiamma Nirenstein, a Senior Fellow of the Jerusalem Center, is a former member of the Italian Parliament, where she was Vice President of the Committee on Foreign Affairs in the Chamber of Deputies. She also served in the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, and established and chaired the Committee for the Inquiry into Antisemitism. She is the author of over 20 books and hundreds of articles. Publications by Fiamma Nirenstein

Lt.-Col. (ret.) Michael Segall, a Senior Researcher at the Jerusalem Center, has provided groundbreaking analysis of Iranian military strategy and tactics, and has written extensively about Iranian penetration of Latin America and Africa. Publications by Michael Segall

Pastor Dumisani Washington is the Founder and CEO of the Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel (IBSI). He formerly served as the Diversity Outreach Coordinator for Christians United for Israel (CUFI), where he organized multiethnic Christian support for Israel and helped launch CUFI‑Africa to engage Israel-supporters across the continent. Washington is the author of Zionism and the Black Church: Why Standing with Israel Will be a Defining Issue for Christians of Color in the 21st Century.

Joshua Washington is Director of the Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel (IBSI) and a leader in educating and engaging the American Black community about Israel.

South African native Olga Meshoe Washington is an attorney and CEO of DEISI (Defend Embrace Invest Support Israel) and National Director for Programming and Engagement at Club Z, an organization for young American Zionists. She has worked in Israel advocacy for years in the U.S. and Africa. Her father, Reverend Kenneth Meshoe, is a leader of the African Christian Democratic party and a member of the Parliament of South Africa.

Ahmed Zoabi is an Israeli Arab educator, speaker, and activist who works at the Israel Ministry of Education. He volunteers at several initiatives to empower and integrate youth from Israel’s Arab minority into Israeli society.