Israeli website reaches out to moderates in Persian

While Israel debates the wisdom of an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, the University of Haifa has launched a new website in the Persian language aiming to bring together moderate Iranians and Israelis.

The new site, https://www.tehtel.com, features stories on Israeli culture and society directed toward an Iranian audience. It has attracted more than 10,000 users in its first week.

Yoni Shadmi, the editor of the site, told Army Radio: “Our primary goal is that the story be interesting, and only after that the political context — in the belief that if the content is engaging, it will attract people from everywhere, no matter their origin.”

Despite the active presence of Iranians on the site, TehTel has seen barely any traffic from Israeli visitors. One Iranian wrote: “Dear brothers, we are nearly at war — but it is still possible to prevent it and start to talk.” But he is still waiting for an answer from an Israeli.