The Jerusalem Post Annual Conference, April 2012, Speakers:


Steve Linde – Editor-in-Chief of The Jerusalem Post
Steve Linde was appointed editor-in-chief of The Jerusalem Post in July, 2011, after serving as managing editor, news editor and night editor at the paper over the past 14 years. He also served as director, editor, reporter and news reader for Israel Radio’s English News over a period of 21 years. Born in Zimbabwe and raised in South Africa, he has graduate degrees in sociology and journalism, the latter from the University of California at Berkeley. Linde made aliya in 1987, served in IDF artillery and has lived in Jerusalem for the past 21 years.
Special guest – former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert
Ehud Olmert led Israel through two wars and attempted to make peace as Israel's prime minister from 2006 to 2009. Prior to that he had a 30-year political career in which he served as mayor of Jerusalem for a decade after serving in the Knesset on the Foreign Affairs and Defense, Finance, Education and Defense Budget committees. He has also served as minister-without-portfolio responsible for minority affairs and as minister of health.
Gilad Erdan – Israeli Minister of Environmental Protection.
A member of the Israeli Knesset for Likud and as the Israeli Minister of Environmental Protection. In addition, He is currently the chairman of the Likud Youth. Outside the Knesset, MK Erdan is chairman of Al Sam, an organisation dealing with drug issues (- he also serves on the Knesset's Committee on Drug Abuse), and also established the Lobby for Soldiers Missing in Action, of which he remains chairman. MK Erdan is also a member of the Israel Broadcasting Authority's General Assembly.
Gabi Ashkenazi – former Chief of Staff of the IDF
Gabi Ashkenazi was the chief of staff of the Israel Defense forces from 2007 to 2011. He served in the IDF for almost 40 years and was also the director-general of Israel's Ministry of Defense in 2006. He attended the US Marine Corps Unniversity's Command and Staff College and is a graduate of Harvard Business School.
Danny Ayalon – Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister
Danny Ayalon is Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister and has served in Israel's Foreign Service for over 20 years, including as political adviser to prime ministers Ehud Barak, Binyamin Netanyahu and Ariel Sharon. He was Israel's Ambassador to the United States from 2002 to 2006 and has also held the position of co-chairman of Nefesh B'Nefesh.
Prof. Alan M. Dershowitz – Attorney, law professor and author
Alan M. Dershowitz is the Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. His clients in the courtroom have included such well-known profiles as O.J. Simpson, Claus von Bülow, Mike Tyson and Patty Hearst. One of the world's top Israel advocates and the author of dozens of books, Dershowitz has been called “America’s most public Jewish defender” and “Israel’s single most visible defender – the Jewish state’s lead attorney in the court of public opinion.”
Ron Prosor – Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations
Ron Prosor is Israel's representative to the United Nations. He served in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for over 20 years, including three years as director-general of the ministry, before accepting his current post. He has also served as Israel's Ambassador to the United Kingdom, in addition to holding many other respected positions.
Ido Aharoni – Consul General of Israel in New York
Consul General of Israel in New York and a 20-year veteran of Israel's Foreign Service, is focusing on improving Israel’s overall positioning in the USA and is known to many in the Jewish world. He has been a member of Israel’s Foreign Service since 1991, serving in Los Angeles and New York, and later on as the Head of Israel's Brand Management Team and a Senior Advisor to Israel's Foreign Minister and Vice Prime Minister.
Meir Dagan – former director of the Mossad
Meir Dagan served as the director of the Mossad (Israel's Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations) under prime ministers Ariel Sharon, Ehud Olmert and Binyamin Netanyahu, from 2002 until 2011. He is known for his controversial opinions regarding the prudence of an attack on Iran's nuclear facilities. He is the director of the Israel Ports Company and chairman of Gulliver Energy, Ltd.
Elyezer Shkedy – Former Commander in Chief Of the IAF and President & CEO EL AL Israel Airlines
He was appointed campaign commander against countries that do not border Israel. This put him in charge of Israeli Iran Command, which was set up to be the overall coordinator of Israeli military and intelligence against Iran should a war start .He holds a BSc in Mathematics and Computer Science with Honors from Ben-Gurion University and an MA in System Management with Honors from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California.
Efi Stenzler – World Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Jewish National Fund 
Efi Stenzler is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Jewish National Fund, as well as a Substitute Chairman of the Israeli Land Administration council. Former Mayor of Givatayim and Chairman of the Local Planning and Construction Committee. He Studied Public Administration and Local Government at the Bar Ilan University. He is a Graduate of Harvard University Executive program - John Kennedy School of Government. He is a Honorable member of the New York Public Educational Institutions Organization.
Russell F. Robinson – CEO JNF 
Russell F. Robinson is the Chief Executive Officer 1998, Russell became the youngest CEO in JNF’s history JNF is one of the most recognized non-profits for cultivation of young donor population, business, financial integrity and volunteer involvement. Russell is featured in the best selling management book, “The 24 hour Turnaround, How Amazing Entrepreneurs Succeed in Tough Times.
Malcolm Hoenlein – Executive vice chairman of the CPMAJO
Malcolm Hoenlein has been the executive vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations since 1986. He has met with world leaders and Jewish communities around the globe, and has written and lectured on international relations and Israel and Middle East affairs. He serves as an adviser to many public officials and is frequently consulted on public policy issues. He appears regularly in the media and is associated with and serves on the boards of many communal, educational and civic organizations.
Daniel Seaman – Deputy Director General of the Israeli Ministry of Public Diplomacy
Daniel Seaman is the Deputy Director General of the Israeli Ministry of Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs, which is part of the office of the Prime Minister in Jerusalem. he served as the Director of the Israel Government Press office between 2000 and 2010.
Alon Pinkas – Foreign relations expert & former consul general of Israel in New York
With nearly two decades of experience in foreign affairs, Ambassador Alon Pinkas has devoted his career to Israeli international relations. The consul general of Israel in New York from 2000 to 2004, he served as the liaison between the state of Israel and the US. He is currently a foreign affairs correspondent for Fox Television and has served in the past as foreign policy adviser to Ehud Barak, political adviser to Shimon Peres and chief of staff to several ministers of Foreign Affairs.
Dr. David Breakstone – Vice Chairman of the World Zionist Organization
Founding director of its Herzl Museum and Educational Center, and a columnist for The Jerusalem Post where he frequently addresses issues of Israel-Diaspora relations. He has a Ph.D. from Hebrew University in Teaching Israel and has published extensively on the subject.
Ehud Arnon – CEO Israel Discount Bank – USA
Ehud Arnon holds a Bachelor's degree in Economics and International Relations, and a Masters in Business Management, both from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Arnon was an HSBC executive manager between 2001 and 2007, and managed the bank's business branch in Tel Aviv. He filled a variety of senior positions in the banking industry leading up to 2001, the most recent of which was business division manager at Bank Hapoalim. He was appointed CEO of Bank Discount in New York at the beginning of 2011.
David Suissa – President of Tribe Media Corp
David Suissa is a branding and advertising consultant, as well as a popular columnist and eloquent Israel advocate. He is the founder of OLAM magazine and Meals4Israel.com and founder and CEO of Suissa Miller Advertising, USA Today’s Agency of the Year. Suissa’s writings on advertising have been published in several publications, including The Los Angeles Times and Advertising Age. He is also president of TRIBE Media Corp/The Jewish Journal and writes frequently on Israel and American Jewish affairs.
Isi Leibler – ‘Jerusalem Post’ columnist and former leader of Australian Jewry and the World Jewish Congress
Isi Leibler is a veteran international Jewish leader with a distinguished record of contributions to the cause of human rights. His leadership roles prior to making aliya included head of the Australian Jewish community and Chairman of the Governing Board of the World Jewish Congress. Today, he writes prolifically and is a regular columnist for the Jerusalem Post.
David Brinn – Jerusalem Post Managing Editor
David Brinn is the managing editor of The Jerusalem Post. He made aliya in 1985 from the US and has worked in many senior capacities at the Post over the past 21 years. In 2008, Brinn was chosen as a fellow in the prestigious USC Annenberg/Getty Arts Journalism Program in Los Angeles. The founding editor of Israel21C, a non-profit organization that provides news on health, technology, democracy and global ties in Israel, he lives in Ma’ale Adumim with his wife and four children.
Caroline B. Glick – Jerusalem Post senior contributing editor
Caroline Glick is the senior contributing editor at The Jerusalem Post. Her highly popular columns are regularly syndicated. Her writings have been published in The Wall Street Journal, National Review, The Journal of International Security Affairs, The Boston Globe, The Washington Times, The Jewish Press, Frontpage Magazine and Moment Magazine and numerous online journals focusing on the strategic and political issues facing Israel and the United States. She has appeared on MSNBC, FOX News, Sky News and The Christian Broadcasting Network, among others.
Gil Hoffman – Jerusalem Post political reporter
The political correspondent for The Jerusalem Post, Gil Hoffman has interviewed every major figure across the Israeli political spectrum and is a regular analyst on CNN, Al-Jazeera and other news outlets. His writing and TV appearances provide a behind-the-scenes look at the intrigue and humor in the Israeli political arena. Hoffman, who was raised in Chicago, graduated magna cum laude from Northwestern University’s School of Journalism and wrote for The Miami Herald and The Arizona Republic before moving to Israel. A reserve soldier in the IDF Spokesman's Unit and sought-after lecturer round the world, Hoffman lives in Jerusalem with his wife and two children.
Yaakov Katz – Jerusalem Post military affairs reporter
Yaakov Katz is the military correspondent and defense analyst for The Jerusalem Post. He is the co-author of Israel vs. Iran – The Shadow War, which was published in Israel last year and was a national bestseller. It is scheduled to be published in the US in the beginning of 2012. Katz led the Post’s coverage of the recent IDF wars and operations including the Second Lebanon War against Hezbollah in 2006 and Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip in 2009.
Herb Keinon – Jerusalem Post diplomatic reporter
Herb Keinon, who is the Post’s diplomatic correspondent, has been at the paper for the last 25 years and has been covering the diplomatic beat since August 2000. In addition to writing news stories, he also writes analyses, features and a “light” monthly column on the trials and tribulations of raising a family in Israel. Originally from Denver, Keinon has lived in Israel for some 30 years, is married with four children, and lives in Ma'ale Adumim. He has a BA in political science from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and an MA in journalism from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana.
Naomi Ragen – Author and Jerusalem Post columnist
Naomi Ragen is an American-born novelist, playwright and journalist who has lived in Jerusalem since 1971 and who writes regularly for The Jerusalem Post about Israel and Jewish issues. Ragen has published eight internationally best selling novels and is the author of a hit play (Women's Minyan), which has been performed more than 500 times in Israel’s National Theatre (Habimah) as well as in the United States and Argentina. An advocate for women's rights in Israel, she campaigns against gender segregation on Israeli buses and bias in rabbinical courts.
Neshama Carlebach – leading superstar in Jewish entertainment
Neshama Carlebach, a leading superstar in Jewish entertainment, is continuing the legacy of her late father, Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach. His deep spirituality and love of humanity filled every song he wrote and touched every person he encountered as he changed the face of Jewish music, and his daughter is his protégé, performing together with The Green Pastures Baptist Church Choir.
Photo's by: Reuters/Brian Snyder, Snyder, Eladmkeren, Marc Israel, CC-BY-SA Carl Lender, Commons Share Alike, Ariel Jerozolimski,Israel Hadari,Justin Hoch, Embassy of Israel, London, CC-BY-SA-NC Gilad Erdan.