MK Avishay Braverman on the Today Programme

On 2 September 2010, MK Avishay Braverman, Minister for Minorities, was on BBC 4's Today Programme discussing the seriousness on the part of the Israeli government and the Israeli people for a peace deal.

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Former Israeli Diplomat, Alon Pinkas on BBC Radio 5 Live.

On 2 September 2010, former Israeli Consul General in the United States, Ambassador Alon Pinkas and Professor Manuel Hassassian, the Palestinian Ambassador to the UK were interviewed by BBC Radio 5 Live. Ambassador Pinkas emphasised Israel's desire for peace, stressing the concern felt by Israelis regarding land and security, and that both the Palestinians and Israelis need to move away from blame and seeking fault with each other.  This is the time for leadership, courage and decision making from both sides. 

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BICOM CEO discussing Israel’s new Gaza policy

On the 17 June BICOM CEO Lorna Fitzsimons and Kamel Hawwaash, Vice Chair of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, were interviewed on BBC Radio 4 discussing Israel's new policy towards Gaza.

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Former Israeli Diplomat, Alon Pinkas on the Today Programme

Former Israeli diplomat Alon Pinkas on the Today programme discussing the impact of Israel's blockade.

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BICOM CEO on LBC discussing the Gaza blockade

BICOM CEO Lorna Fitzsimons on LBC talk radio discussing the Gaza flotilla and the wider implication of the Gaza blockade.

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Washington Post columnist Jim Hoagland on US foreign policy and the Middle East peace process

Jim Hoagland is Associate Editor, Chief Foreign Correspondent and columnist at The Washington Post. Mr. Hoagland is a two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize and has also received the prestigious Cernobbio-Europa Prize for explaining the aftermath of 9/11and its impact on US-Europe relations.

In this BICOM podcast, Mr. Hoagland discusses US foreign policy and the Middle East peace process.

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Ami Ayalon discusses the prospects and challenges of the Middle East peace process

Ami Ayalon was commander of the Israeli Navy from 1993 to 1996. He served as head of Shin Bet (Israel's internal security service) from 1995 to 2000. On 25 June 2003, Ayalon launched, together with Palestinian professor Sari Nusseibeh, a peace initiative called "The People's Voice". The goal of the initiative is to collect as many signatures of Israelis and Palestinians as possible for the peace plan guidelines supporting a two-state solution without the right of return for Palestinian refugees. In 2006, Ayalon was elected to the Knesset on the Israeli Labor Party's list. He served as Knesset member and minister until he stepped down in 2008.

In our BICOM podcast Ami Ayalon discusses the challenges and prospects of the Middle East peace processes.

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Israeli journalist Aluf Benn discusses the potential challenges and developments for the year ahead

Editor-at-Large and Columnist at Haaretz Aluf Benn talks to BICOM about the US administration's Middle East policy in its first year, Prime Minister Netanyahu's approach to the peace process, and prospects for the renewal of final status negotiations.

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Operation Cast Lead one year on: Voices from Israel – Tal Dorot

In the first of a two-part series looking at life in Israel one year on from Operation Cast Lead, Tal Dorot talks to BICOM about his experiences living and studying in a region besieged by Hamas rockets, and about how his life has changed since Operation Cast Lead. Tal, from Ashkelon, is in the fourth year of his film studies course at Sapir College, near Sderot.

For more information please click here

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Operation Cast Lead one year on: Voices from Israel – David Wolfson

In the second of a two-part series looking at life in Israel one year on from Operation Cast Lead, David Wolfson talks to BICOM about the psychological impact that the rockets on Gaza have had on Ashkelon's residents, and how they are dealing with this post Operation Cast Lead. David is the manager of the community work department for social services in Ashkelon.

For more information please click here

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Ambassador Alon Pinkas discusses the latest developments in the Middle East

Ambassador Alon Pinkas, former Israeli Consulate General to the United States, speaks to BICOM about the latest developments in the peace process, the Shalit deal and the threat from Iran.

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BBC Radio 4: Obama-Netanyahu Meeting in Washington

Israeli diplomat Alon Pinkas discusses the Obama-Netanyahu meeting in Washington and its effect of future negotiations and the peace process.

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BBC Radio 4: Lieberman sworn in as Foreign Minister

The Jerusalem Post's Gill Hoffman discusses the appointment of Avigdor Lieberman as Foreign Minister, arguing that the new Israeli administration remains committed to peace with the Palestinians.

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BBC Radio 4: Amnesty International report

Ex-British Army Colonel Richard Kemp discusses the recent report by Amnesty International on the World Tonight on BBC Radio 4.

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BBC Radio 4: Israel's right can make peace

Tim Franks reports on the history of Israel's right wing political parties demonstrating their sincerity for peace.

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Talk Sport Radio: Operation Cast Lead

BICOM CEO discusses the ban on foreign journalists in Gaza and the complexities of warfare within the dense urban area.

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Jeremy Vine Show on BBC Radio 2: prospects for success

BICOM CEO Lorna Fitzsimons discusses the current situation in Gaza and prospects for the future in an interview with Jeremy Vine. She appeared alongside Victoria Brittain, former executive foreign editor of the Guardian.

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LBC Radio: BICOM CEO on Gaza conflict

BICOM CEO explains the predicament that Israel finds itself in as it continues with its military operation in Gaza.

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President Shimon Peres appears on the Today Programme

President Peres talks to the BBC about prospects under the Obama presidency, state of negotiations with the Palestinians and Iranian nuclear ambitions.

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BICOM CEO Lorna Fitzsimons on woman's hour

Lorna Fitzsimons discusses the prospect of a Livni Premiership ahead of the Kadima Primaries.

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BICOM CEO Lorna Fitzsimons on BBC Radio 4's Today Programme

On 6 August 2008 BICOM CEO Lorna Fitzsimons appeared on BBC Radio 4's Today Programme discussing the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the security threat posed to Israel.

 

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Dr. Shmuel Bar discusses Iran's nuclear aspirations

On Wednesday, 25 June 2008, BICOM held an interview with Dr. Shmuel Bar, Director of Studies at the Institute of Policy and Strategy in Herzliya, Israel.

Dr. Bar answered questions about the fading window of opportunity for effective sanctions, the seriousness of Ahmadinejad's anti-Israel rhetoric, and also offered his perspective on the ramifcations of a change in Israeli leadership for Israel's policy towards Iran. 

In addition to being Director of Studies at the Institute of Policy and Strategy in Herzliya, Israel, Dr. Bar is on the steering team of the annual "Herzliya Conference". He is also an adjunct Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute and has been (2007) Distinguished Koret Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University.

For thirty years Dr. Bar served in the Israeli government, first in the IDF Intelligence and then in the Israeli Office of the Prime Minister. Since the mid 1980's he specialized in the ideology and operational codes of Islamic fundamentalist movements and particularly of the Jihadi movement that later evolved into al-Qaeda. During this period he also served as First Secretary at the Israeli Embassy in The Hague, Netherlands.

Since 2002, Dr. Bar has headed research projects - some of them for US government agencies - and published extensively on issues relating to the Middle East, including deterrence theory in the context of the Middle East, radical Islamic ideology, Iranian defense doctrine, leadership and negotiation behavior, Syrian leadership and the Ba'ath party, Jordan and the Palestinians. He holds a Ph.D. in History of the Middle East from Tel-Aviv University. 

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Gaza ceasefire: virtual symposium with Yoav Stern and Dr. Jonathan Rynhold

In light of yesterday's announcement of a Gaza ceasefire agreement, On 18 June 2008, BICOM held a virtual symposium conference call with two leading Israeli commentators to look at this development.

Yoav Stern and Dr Jonathan Rynhold each offered their perspective on the situation. Yoav Stern is a senior correspondent for Haaretz, focusing primarily on Palestinian affairs. He has won a number of international press awards. Dr Jonathan Rynhold, based at Bar-Ilan University, is a senior research fellow at the BESA Centre for Strategic Studies. He is a specialist on Israel and the peace process. Both spoke for ten minutes about the announcement of the ceasefire and the implications this holds for Israel's internal political scene, the Palestinian Authority, Egypt, and the region. 

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Exclusive BICOM Interview with Dr. Mark Heller

On Monday, 19 May, BICOM held an interview with Dr. Mark Heller, Principal Research Associate at the Institute for National Security Studies.

Dr. Heller answered questions on topics such as the Annapolis peace process, Hamas and its control over Gaza, Hezbollah and the current situation in Lebanon, and wider regional issues such as the stratgic threat posed by Iran and its nuclear programme.

Mark A. Heller is a Principal Research Associate at the Institute for National Security Studies. He is the editor of INSS Insight and was formerly the editor of Tel Aviv Notes. Dr. Heller is currently on sabbatical conducting research on the triangular relationship between Israel, the US, and Europe.

Dr. Heller received his B.A. in Political Science and Economics at the University of Toronto and completed his graduate studies at Harvard University, where he earned an M.A. in Middle Eastern Studies and a Ph.D. in Political Science. He has taught international relations at Tel Aviv University and at several American universities. He was Coordinator of Research at the Canadian Institute for International Peace and Security in 1991, Visiting Professor of Government at Harvard University in 1992, and Research Associate at the International Institute for! Strategic Studies in 1999.

Dr. Heller has written extensively on Middle Eastern political and strategic issues. His publications include A Palestinian State: The Implications for Israel; The Middle East Military Balance, which he edited and co-authored from 1983 to 1985 and again in 1996 and 1997; The New Middle Class and Regime Stability in Saudi Arabia (co-authored with Nadav Safran); No Trumpets, No Drums: A Two-State Settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (co-authored with Sari Nusseibeh); The Dynamics of Soviet Policy in the Middle East: Between Old Thinking and New; Europe & the Middle East: New Tracks to Peace?; IISS Adelphi Paper 335, Continuity and Change in Israeli Security Policy; and Israel and the Palestinians: Israeli Policy Options (co-edited with Rosemary Hollis). He has also published numerous monographs, book chapters, and articles in Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, Orbis, Survival, The Journal of Strategic Studies and other professional journals, and his op-ed articles have appeared in The New York Times, The International Herald Tribune, and other leading newspapers.

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Amos Harel, Haaretz military correspondent, talks about imminent release of final Winograd Report

Amos Harel, the Haaretz military affairs correspondent gave BICOM an exlclusive 10 minute talk about the imment final Winograd Report.

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Mehdi Khalaji of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy talks to BICOM about the Iranian political system

On 14 April 2008, BICOM held an interview with Mehdi Khalaji, visiting fellow at The Washington Institute For Near East Policy. Mehdi Khalaji is an expert on the role of politics in contemporary Shiite clericalism in Iran and Iraq. A Shiite theologian by training, Mr. Khalaji has also served on the editorial boards of two prominent Iranian periodicals and produced for the U.S. government's Persian news service.

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Professor Asher Susser talks to BICOM about recent Israeli-Palestinian developments

Senior Fellow at the Crown Center for Middle East Studies at Brandeis University, Professor Asher Susser was Director of the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies at Tel Aviv University from 2001 to 2007, and was previously Director from 1989 to 1995. He is one of Israel's leading experts on Jordan and the Palestinians. Prof. Susser was the only Israeli academic invited by Prime Minister Rabin to join him and King Hussein at their historic appearance before the U.S. Congress. A graduate of Tel Aviv University, where he earned his Ph.D. (1986), Susser has been a Fulbright Fellow, a visiting professor at Cornell University, the University of Chicago, and Brandeis University.

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BBC Radio 4: Tim Franks reports from Sderot where life is becoming increasingly 'unbearable'

BBC Middle East Correspondent Tim Franks reports from the Israeli border town of Sderot, where residents suffer from a daily barrage of rocket attacks from militants in the Gaza strip.

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World-renowned Syria and Lebanon expert Professor Eyal Zisser discusses the region

Professor Eyal Zisser is the director of the Moshe Dayan Centre for MIddle Eastern and African Studies at Tel Aviv University. Listen to him talk about the Syrian and Lebanese dimensions to Israel's foreign policy.

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The View From Sderot

BICOM spoke exclusively with four residents living in and around under-fire Sderot. They spoke of the constant fear they live through under regular rocket fire from the Gaza Strip and how the lives of they and their families have had to change dramatically.

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