The Chairman and Director hold meetings in the Middle East, 15th - 18th November 2019
Forward Thinking Director, Oliver McTernan, and Chairman, William Sieghart held a series of meetings across Israel, the West Bank and Gaza between the 15th - 18th of November .
In Israel they met with the Director General of the Likud party, Siso Tzuri, and the Minister of Economy and Industry, Eli Cohen, for discussions about the current trends in Israeli politics and the future direction of Forward Thinking's work. Israel remains gripped by political uncertainty, with some arguing that it is increasingly likely that there will be a 3rd general election within a year due to the inability of any leader to form a working coalition.
Oliver and William were also able to travel to the West Bank and Gaza. In the West Bank, meetings were held with former PLC representatives to discuss current challenges and developments within the Palestinian political sphere. A number of other meetings across Jerusalem provided meaningful opportunities for Forward Thinking to meet with key partners, such as Dr Mahdi Abdul Hadi the Director of PASSIA, and to prepare for forthcoming activities.
In Gaza city, they met with mayor, Dr Yahya Sarraj, to explore the humanitarian and political situation there after the recent escalations in hostilities.
William and Oliver will continue to hold meetings in both Israel and the Palestinian Territories throughout the coming week - tomorrow they will meet with a group of youth activists as part of an academic workshops on the drivers of transnational terrorism.