November 17th - 23rd, 2009
(Please note that all speakers are tentative, based on their busy and unpredictable schedules)
Tuesday, November 17th
 
9:00 am Optional Tour of the recently renovated Yad V’Shem Holocaust Museum.
Rabbi Eliyahu Ellis, Historian & Tour Guide.
 
 
Meet at HonestReporting desk in hotel reception.
 
 
1:00 pm Welcome to Jerusalem!
Opening reception and introductions at the Inbal Hotel
 
 
2:30 pm "An Eye-Opener to Advocacy"
 
 
3:00 pm Ambassador Danny Ayalon, MK
 
 
4:00 pm "The Other Israel"
Amotz Asa-El, President of Business Week, Israel Edition, and a Senior Fellow of the Shalem Center
 
 
5:00 pm Lt. Gen. (Res.) Moshe Ya’alon, MK
17th Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, now serving in the Israeli Knesset for Likud
 
 
6:30 pm Depart for dinner

Dinner at 'Noya', An elegant, new meat restaurant, combining the tastes of the French cuisine and the Mediterranean; located in the center of Jerusalem, in an old and fancy building with a magnificent décor.

Return to Inbal Hotel
 
 
Optional: Unwind; release steam and discuss the day's programming in the hotel lounge
 
 
Wednesday, November 18th
 
6:30 am Optional: Jet Lag Jog with Ephraim Shore
 
 
6:30-8:15 am Breakfast
Israel is famous for its special hotel breakfast: this is not just any breakfast – it's a banquet! Enjoy a countless selection of cheeses, homemade breads, juices, coffees, fruits, grains, cereals, veggies, fish and more.
 
 
8:30 am Itamar Marcus, Palestinian Media Watch (www.pmw.org.il) - Watchdog group that monitors Palestinian media for incitement to violence and anti-Israel propaganda
 
 
10:00 am "Human Rights, NGOs, the Media and the Durban Strategy"
Professor Gerald Steinberg, Bar Ilan University
 
 
11:30 am "Taking the Battle Against Terrorism into the Courts" Nitsana Leitner, Esq.,Director, Israel Legal Center; providing legal representation and resources for courtroom struggles on behalf of the Jewish State.
 
 
1:00 pm Lunch in downtown Jerusalem
 
 
2:00 pm VIP Tour of Jerusalem City Hall with Foreign Media Spokesperson, Stephan Miller
 
 
4:30 pm "Helping Hands"
A hands-on experience, contributing some time and energy toward helping Israeli society
 
 
5:00 pm Dinner at Sheyan a new Asian and Chinese restaurant; a lovely Asian "retreat", situated in the beautiful windmill complex in the Rehavia neighborhood
 
 
Thursday, November 19th
 
8:15 am Bus to our downtown, MediaCentral offices.
 
 
8:45 am Behind the Scenes at Honest Reporting
Joe Hyams, Managing Director - HonestReporting.com
 
 
10:30 am "Myth & Reality in the Refugee Problem"
Dr. Mordechai Kedar a lecturer in Arabic at Bar-Ilan University, also an expert on Israeli Arabs.
 
 
Working lunch at MediaCentral
 
 
11:40 am "MediaCentral: Reaching out to the Press"
Aryeh Green, Director
 
 
Walk to Government Press Offices
 
 
1:30 pm "The Foreign Media in Israel"
Danny Seaman, Director, Government Press Office.
 
 
4:00 pm Tour of the Western Wall Tunnels with Lee Glassman, Tour Guide, Archaeologist and Historian.
 
 
7:00 pm Dinner at "Between the Arches"
Ancient Crusader structure, restored as a modern restaurant.
 
 
Optional: Unwind; release steam and discuss the day's programming in the lounge of the Inbal Hotel
 
 
Friday, November 20th
 
8:00 am Depart for Hebron & Gush Etzion
 
 
  • Hebron, Ancient City of the Patriachs. Dealing with Modern Complexities “The Truth; The Myths & The Complexities”
  • Gush Etzion - Kibbutz Kfar Etzion Audio/visual show relating the fight for the Gush
  • Lunch at Gavneh, a hilltop restaurant with a panoramic view with guest speaker Shaul Goldstein, Mayor of Gush Etzion
  • "Pina Chama" - ("A Warm Corner") - a community endeavor to give the soldiers a taste of home.
 
 
2:00 pm Return to hotel. Prepare for Shabbat.
 
 
3:30 pm Leave for Old City

Shabbat Shalom! Candlelighting (3:57 pm)

Kabbalat Shabbat at the Western Wall
 
 
5:30 pm Shabbat Dinner in the Old City overlooking the Western Wall
An authentic, traditional Shabbat experience in the Heart of Jerusalem.
Walk back to Inbal Hotel.
 
 
Shabbat: Saturday, November 21st
 
8:15 am Optional Shabbat morning services in the beautiful 100-year old synagogue of Yemin Moshe overlooking the walls of Jerusalem, or in other Congregations throughout Jerusalem. (Other options available from hotel Concierge)

Shabbat lunch:Home Hospitality with English-speaking families who now live in Jerusalem
 
 
3:45 pm "What Arabs inside Israel are Really Thinking"
Khaled Abu Toameh, Israeli Arab, West Bank and Gaza correspondent for the Jerusalem Post, and the US News and World Report
 
 
5:20 pm Havdallah - A short, farewell ceremony to end Shabbat, followed by a light, buffet supper
 
 
6:00 pm "How to Effectively Advocate for Israel"
Neil Lazarus, Director of AwesomeSeminars.com
 
 
8:00 pm Free Evening - time for shopping, and socializing in downtown Jerusalem
 
 
Sunday, November 22nd
 
7:30 am "Threats & Security" Overview, with Elliot Chodof, Military Analyst, IDF Major (res.)
 
 
  • Depart Jerusalem for North via Jordan Valley along the Jordanian Border
  • Discuss West Bank security issues
  • Naharayim on the Jordanian Border, site of the murder of 7 girls by a Jordanian Border Patrol Soldier, in 1997
  • Topographical overlook from the Kinneret
  • Ascend Mt Ben Tal
  • Picnic lunch in the North
  • • Tour Ramat David IDF Air Force base, in the Jezreel Valley
  • Dinner at the Carmel Winery in Zichron Yaakov
 
 
Monday, November 23rd
 
8:30 am "Jewish-Arab Co-existence in Israel"
Avshalom Vilan, Past MK for the Meretz Party & Member of the Lobbies for Jewish-Arab Coexistence, and Advancement of the Third Sector in Israel.
 
 
9:45 am Mark Regev, Spokesman for the Prime Minister's Office
 
 
10:50 am "A Journalist's View"
Caroline Glick, Deputy Managing Editor -The Jerusalem Post
 
 
12:00 pm Free time for check-out (for those leaving today).
 
 
1:00 pm Optional tour of the Begin Center

Return to hotel
 
 
 
 
5:00 pm Final Dinner and closing remarks in the beautiful Ticho House
 
 
8:15 pm Transfer to airport for those leaving tonight