Israel Invites Hundreds Of Foreign Delegations Amid Criticism Of Gaza Strip Situations

JAKARTA - The Israeli government through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced an unprecedented initiative, hosting hundreds of foreign delegates before the end of this year to help spread Israel's narrative amid increasing global condemnation of war and humanitarian crises in the Gaza Strip, Palestine.

"As part of the perception war against the global anti-Israeli narrative, until the end of December around 400 delegates with more than 5,000 participants are expected to come to Israel to help spread Israel's narrative in international media and among global audiences," the ministry said in a statement. August 21.

In comparison, the ministry said it only brought in an average of 25 delegates each year in previous years.

To support this activity, Israel has budgeted a cost of 135 million NIS (Rp645,111,655,377), part of a budget of 545 million NIS (Rp2,604,339,645,781) for public diplomacy efforts announced by Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar late last year.

Although there is no comprehensive spending plan announced to the public, officials noted the budget was then slightly reduced to 543 million NIS and was only released in April, delaying the program's launch until then.

They stressed that most efforts would be allocated to bring delegates to Israel through official diplomatic channels, as well as reach foreign residents directly, especially through media coverage.

According to the statement, the delegation will include officials of foreign governments, legislators, journalists, influencers, academics, and figures from the world of law, religion, culture, and sport.

Each group will receive "specially designed" travel plans in accordance with their background and influence. Planned activities include tours of communities in the south affected by the Hamas-led invasion and massacre on October 7, 2023, gatherings with survivors, and screening of attack footage, as well as visits to Jerusalem in the north, and meetings with senior Israeli officials.

The ministry noted several upcoming delegates, mostly coming from the United States, including the US state's 250 legislator contingent, a delegation of 1,000 priests and religious leaders from four US regions.

In addition, there are also 160 representatives from all 16 German federal states arriving in Israel. Not to forget, journalists from Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America are now arriving "almost every week," the ministry added.