From Jerusalem to Tel Chai

Yesterday we had an awesome strategic tour of Jerusalem and learned a ton about the deep history of the city. Then, we had a great schmooze session about the challenges we each face on campus and the goals that we have for the program in order to make changes when we get back.

Today we traveled to various Arab villages and Jewish settlements in the West Bank. We are headed up north to watch the movie Relentless: The Struggle For Peace in the Middle East and we will spend the night in Tel Chai.

The group arrives to Israel!

The December 20^th - January 5^th Hasbara Fellowships program is well underway. The group has safely arrived to Israel and is staying in Jerusalem, everything is going great! Those students were delayed due to the winter storm will be joining us soon and we cannot wait to welcome them!

The new Aish Center in Jerusalem is beautiful and we are so excited to be the first Hasbara Fellowships group to utilize this structure.

We cannot wait to start our first day of classes tomorrow.

Hasbara 2 Heads Back to Campus

This morning, the students of Hasbara 2 left their Hasbara experience. Some headed to Ben Gurion Airport, whereas other students are independently extending their trips. The final days of the trip were laden with meaningful experiences and beautiful moments.

On Tuesday, the students ventured to Gush Etzion, where they learned about the agricultural and cultural heritage of a community that has been in Israel for over a century. This community was almost destroyed in the War of Independence, but the settlers here are resolute to hold onto their homeland. As a final treat, the students got to tour the Gush's luxe winery.

On the final day of the trip, the students were given ample opportunity to enjoy Jerusalem with some free time. The learning was not completely over, though. Nechemiah Coopersmith imparted some valuable insight to the students about courage and leadership, and how they must use both when returning to campus. Ideas were shared, and the students had the chance to express their thoughts on the issue. Finally, the Hasbara staff went through one final workshop with the students. This session was a culmination of all that the students had learned, and it set the stage for students to share one last session together preparing to bring their experience back to campus.

We all got a chance to say goodbye and close out our trip with a banquet at Lev Yerushalayim. This dinner was where we all got to share our feelings about the trip and reflect one last time before taking our experience and bringing it back with us. There is now another group of trained Hasbara activists, and the true journey begins when we take action together on campus. Shalom!

Back in Jerusalem

We headed out early in the morning from our fantastic Southern excursion. We're now back in Jerusalem, and there was a full day of training.

The staff started out with a workshop on defeating anti-Israel propaganda and the current rends in the media war. After more workshops and training, we had a free night in Jerusalem, and the opportunity to relax and enjoy this great city were refreshing.

As we get ready for shabbat, we are just finished with another busy day. Elliot Mathias presented Israel 360, which prewsents the multiple historical, cultural, and religious aspects of an often misunderstood country. The students then screened

Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West. We are now preparing for shabbat in the Old City, kicking off with a Beauty of Shabbat Concert by Yom Tov Glaser. Shabbat shalom!

New Year's Eve in a Bedouin Tent

It has been a day of contrasts. The morning started out with seminars and workshops, as the students endured perhaps the most rigorous day of education and training in the entire program. The evening, however, has been a relaxed time to sit back and enjoy the hospitality of our Bedouin hosts.

Those intense lessons that started the day centered on Everyday Activism. The first workshop, given by the Hasbara staff, was Organizing Your Israel Group and Building Leadership. Some students are from smaller schools than others, and many will face different challenges in driving activism on campus. This session allowed students to exchange ideas and create a network to fall back on when they get back to campus. The next EA session was a role playing activity. Students took on the identities of activists, politicians, and other figures. Who knew training could be so much fun?

Before we headed out on our next excursion, we got a crash course in how to properly program our activist activities on campus. The staff members introduced us to a host of Hasbara campaigns and gave us ideas about when might be a good time to use each campaign. For instance, Think Green Think Blue, which highlights Israel's environmental record, is often a hit on Earth Day.

Once we finished our sessions, we headed out for some much needed relaxation. We arrived a few hours ago in the small Bedouin village of Chavat Mamshit. The culture of our hosts is exhilirating, and we are getting to experience just a small part of it. The Bedouins showed us their wealth of livestock, and we came face-to-face with their animals. We also got to take camel rides through the desert. How often do you get to do something like that?

It is now only a couple of hours until we ring in the New Year, and we get to do it in this most unusual of settings. So, from under the stars in our Bedouin tent, Layla Tov!

Hasbara 2- Learning in the Old City

It was a day full of learning for Hasbara 2, as we got to enjoy time in the Old City and listen to some of the most insightful sessions of the trip. Leading off was Palestinian journalist Khaled Abu Toameh. Khaled has decades of journalistic experience, and in his time with the group, he explained how he is able to work freely in Israel, whereas Hamas and the Palestinian Authority put strict limitations on what he can say. Israel, he says, gives Arab journalists more freedom than any other country in the Middle East.

Elliot Mathias then spoke at length about answering the most difficult questions about Israel on campus. The students are now ambassadors for the State of Israel, and on campus, they will be expected to answer questions that any student may have about what Israel is all about, and on what is going on here.

After free time and lunch in the Old City, the students reconvened for a workshop on the Anti-Israel Lobby, a force that students will be up against when they return to campus. The students discussed the history of the groups that comrpise this lobby as well as the motives and tactics. Ideas were shared and proposals were tried in role-playing exercises. The students got an in-depth understanding of the messages that they will have to combat on campus.

Shalom to Hasbara 1!

Hasbara 1 has now officially ended, but not before the students had a final meaningful day together. Nechemiah Coopersmith gave the students their last seminar, and it was a memorable one. Mr. Coopersmith spoke to the students about leadership and courage, two qualities that will serve the students well upon their return to campus.

The students were given free time in Jersualem. Some students are remaining in Israel to extend their trips, but for many, this opportunity was the last chance of the trip for some students to experience the HolyLand.

The culmination of the day was a Goodbye Banquet, where students had the opportunity to make their feelings known. Finally, it was off to the airport. But the journey has just begun. We are now sending a group of trained, motivated, and diligent students back to the United States and Canada to fight for Israel.

A Great Weekend

As the students of Hasbara 1 prepare to say goodbye to their Hasbara experience, Hasbara 2's activities are still heating up.

While Hasbara 2 had a free shabbat, Hasbara 1 students were all together in Jerusalem for an unforgettable experience. On Friday noght, they all went to the Western Wall for prayer and got to join in with thousands of other Jews. The students were broken up into small groups and hosted for meals by hospitable residents of the Old City. Having shabbat dinner and lunch in a place with thousands of years of was amazing.

On Sunday, Elias Zaniri gave a presentation with the Palestinian perspective on the conflict. This session was one of the most meorable of the trip, and it helped the students better formulated their thoughts and positions. Next up was Gush Etzion, a village that Jews first settled, under fire, before the creation of the state of Israel. We watched a film presentation on the founding on the village and the sacrifices made by its residents over the years. Resident Lenny Ben-David then spoke to us about the realities of living in the West Bank, and about the Security Barrier. He explained how it has affected them and the populations around Gush Etzion.

The next meeting was especially meaningful. Sherri Mandell spoke to us about the death of her son Koby, who was killed by terrorists over five years ago. In the face of their tragedy, the Mandells have done something truly heroic. They have created Camp Koby, a summer camp for children who have lost loved ones to terror. This camp gives children a place to belong and a way to cope with their loss. Our students hope to raise money for this tremendous cause when they return to campus.

The Hasbara 2 students are now off to their trip to the North. Expert Israeli historian Yisrael Ne'eman was on hand all morning to guide students through some truly memorable historical sites. One town he showed us was Alfei Menashe, an Israeli settlement in the West Bank that is protected by the security fence, by a circuitous route in the fence. The route of this fence has created much controversy among Israeli lawmakers and human rights groups, but the government maintains that the route of the fence is vital to the lives of Alfei Menashe residents. Mr. Ne'eman explained the case to our students.

Givat Chaviva was one of our next stops. This unique kibbutz brings people together from all walks of Israeli life, from soldiers, to civilians, to Palestinians, to Israeli Arabs. The objective is to create a dialogue that can promote further steps towards a lasting peace. Lydia Aizenberg runs this incredible program, and she gave us a personal tour.

Arriving at our hotel in the North, students screened Relentless: The Struggle for Peace in Israel. They then were free for the evening. Layla tov!