Foreign Ministry plans blitz of delegations from abroad to shore up Israel’s image

Amid mounting global condemnation of Israel over the war and humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the Foreign Ministry announces an “unprecedented” initiative to host hundreds of foreign delegations before the end of the year, “to help spread the Israeli narrative in international media.”

“As part of the battle of perception against the global anti-Israel narrative,” the ministry says in a statement, “by the end of December, around 400 delegations with more than 5,000 participants are expected to arrive in Israel to help spread the Israeli narrative in international media and among global audiences.”

By comparison, the ministry says it had brought an average of just 25 delegations annually in previous years.

The plan is slated to cost roughly NIS 135 million (about $40 million), part of a broader NIS 545 million ($163 million) budget for public diplomacy efforts announced by Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar late last year.

While no comprehensive spending plan has been made public, officials noted the budget was later slightly reduced, to NIS 543 million, and only released in April, delaying the rollout of programs until then. They stressed that a major share of the effort will go toward bringing delegations to Israel in order to bypass official diplomatic channels and reach foreign populations directly, primarily through media exposure.

According to the statement, the delegations will include foreign government officials, legislators, journalists, influencers, academics, and people from the legal, religious, cultural and sports worlds. Each group will receive “a tailor-made” itinerary catering to their background and influence. Activities are set to include tours of southern communities hit by the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, invasion and massacre, meetings with survivors, and screenings of footage from the attack, as well as visits to Jerusalem, the north, and sit-downs with senior Israeli officials.

The ministry lists several upcoming delegations, largely arriving from the United States, including a contingent of 250 US state legislators, a delegation of 1,000 pastors and religious leaders from across four US regions. In addition, 160 representatives from all 16 German federal states are due to land in Israel. Journalists from Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America are now arriving “almost weekly,” the ministry adds.