Experts to discuss 'hasbara' at TA conference

Israel Security Council will assess what Israel can do to change its image.

By BEN HARTMAN
The Israel Security Council – a private initiative that brings together 28 experts, including academics and former military officials – will hold a conference on Sunday in Tel Aviv to address the problems faced by the country’s often lackluster hasbara (public diplomacy) efforts.
In a press release issued on Thursday, the council said the conference was being held as “Israel’s image is right before our eyes becoming a national security problem for the State of Israel. A need has been created for someone to fill this vacuum and designate the goals and objectives needed for hasbara.”
The council added that “as part of a real attempt to give answers to the problems of hasbara, the Israel Security Council will present papers showing their standing on a number of different issues, and will take a look at the world and assess what Israel can do to change its image.”
According to the organization, each council member will present a plan of action based on his or her field of expertise to help formulate position papers on internal and external hasbara, which they will attempt to make part of the national agenda.
The conference, which will be held Sunday evening at the Carlton Hotelin Tel Aviv, will feature an address by Israel Security Council chiefMaj.-Gen. (res.) Uzi Dayan, who formerly led the National SecurityCouncil; Brig.-Gen. (res.) Oded Tirah, former president of theManufacturers’ Association; Maj.-Gen. (res.) Giora Eiland, head of theIDF investigative committee into the Gaza flotilla incident; and Prof.Moshe Maor from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
The council includes six experts on security, five who focus ondiplomacy and statecraft, five who focus on community issues, five fromacademia, five experts on economic and social issues, and two from theworld of media and communications.
During the conference, members of the council will sign a declarationof principles for the organization, which will take into account thehasbara difficulties facing the State of Israel today.