We Believe In Israel

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We Believe in Israel was a conference organised by BICOM held on May 15 2011 and described as "the largest conference in support of Israel ever to take place in Britain".

The conference "united behind Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, and helped participants find their voices to engage with and support Israel in Britain" and attracted 1,500 participants.

Session themes included "who the anti-Israel lobby is in Britain". Sponsors of the conference included the Jewish National Fund UK, the Jewish Leadership Council, the Zionist Federation and the Board of Deputies of British Jews.[1]

Eran Shayshon of the Reut Institute which identified the UK, especially London, as a major hub of activities that 'delegitimize' Israel[2], has suggested that this conference as well as the Big Tent for Israel event later in the year signalled "the emergence of the pro-Israel network".[3]

Plans for a second conference on April 29 2012 were cancelled by organizers in February. The Jewish Chronicle reported that this was a "strategic decision" rather than due to lack of funds. The JC reports that a statement from organizers wanted Luke Akehurst, appointed director of We Believe in Israel in August 2011[4] to focus on "staging smaller events in regional communities" throughout the year.[5]

They expressed the belief that this would aid "the quiet organisational revolution that needs to take place to enable us to punch our weight in the debate about Israel in the UK." The conference may return in 2013.

Speakers

According to the conference website, speakers included:

Resources

Israel advocacy toolkit

We Believe In Israel produced a Toolkit for Israel advocacy, including sections on what it calls 'dining for Israel', lobbying MPs and local organising.

Notes

  1. Homepage, We Believe in Israel, accessed June 2 2012
  2. The Assault on Israel's Legitimacy: London as a Case Study, Reut Institute, accessed 29 May 2012.
  3. Towards the Big Tent for Israel, Reut Blog, accessed June 2 2012
  4. Luke Akehurst profile, LinkedIn, accessed June 2 2012
  5. Marcus Dycsh, We Believe Shelved For This Year, Jewish Chronicle, accessed June 2 2012
  6. Homepage, We Believe in Israel, accessed June 2 2012