Photos from the JNS International Policy Summit

Sharon A

It’s summertime.

People are returning to the Jerusalem streets.

From June 21-23, 1000 people gathered in Jerusalem, Israel, to meet and hear from 200 speakers.

The Waldorf Astoria Jerusalem was the site of the three-day JNS 2026 (Jerusalem News Syndicate) International Policy Summit.

Breaking 3 full days down to 3 minutes of highlights was not simple.

DAY ONE

Before the official program began, the VIP Lounge was briefly open.

South African Chief Rabbi Warren Goldstein was one of the speakers.

Miss Israel 2025 Melanie Shiraz was one of the participants.

Security was at the highest level.

Getting stuck with Col Richard Kemp and Jonathan Cornicus made for an interesting wait.

Outspoken Sid Rosenberg was back again, as was diplomatic Malcolm Hoenlein.

As always, US Ambassador Mike Huckabee was a favorite speaker.

JNS Editor-in-Chief Jonathan Tobin moderated the first panel

One of the Israeli politicians at the summit was MK Ohad Tal.

The opening night program ran late, waiting for the Prime Minister and his wife to arrive.

During the day, they were at Har Herzl for the 50th anniversary of Yoni Netanyahu’s death during the rescue in Entebbe.

PM Benjamin Netanyahu spoke – all the plenaries were livestreamed and recorded.

We were all smiling when the program ended, and we could finally eat something.

I went home just as long-time friends were also leaving the hotel.

DAY TWO

Tzipi Hotovely, former Ambassador to the United Kingdom, now Head of the National Public Diplomacy Directorate, was interviewed by JNS CEO Alex Traiman.

There were hundreds of people outside the main sessions. Some spent their time taking selfies.

No, that is not me for a selfie. But one person I was glad to see, and compliment was Marcus Sheff, IMPACT SE CEO. I often use their information on UNRWA’s Arabic hate against Israel on social media.

Imagine so many people, I did not find friends in the crowd, but got these two with similar names together!

Jonathan Tobin found a minute of solitude to check his phone.

Shabbos Kestenbaum and comedian Ami Kozak were together again. I had taken their photo together at another conference.

I missed Einat Wilf speaking, but stopped her in the hall.

She is starting a new political party, OZ, and just wrote a complementary post on social media about the Lebanon-Israel agreement.

There was a long list of speakers and many panels.

Plus, videos were made during the days with interviews for JNS TV.

A highlight of the day, as the day went on, was the Shalva Band.

Interestingly, several minyanim, prayer services, were not in the schedule, but popped up in the hall, and not only in the synagogue.

Caught Caroline Glick on my way out, and watched the rest online.

More Day 2 photos- HERE

Nice to see something bright and new on the Jerusalem streets on my way home.

DAY THREE

Montana Tucker spoke well. I have been a fan since her movie, The Children of October 7, opened at the Museum of Tolerance in Jerusalem. I was glad I had a minute to tell her when she left the stage.

She is to be featured at the Maccabiah Opening event on Wednesday night.

Tired yet?

Summit chairman Richard Heidemann welcomed EMET founder Sarah Stern and Mosab Hassan Yosef to the stage.

Along with Dr. Dan Diker, the “Green Prince” spoke without politically correct filters about the Middle East to great applause.

As the son of the founder of Hamas, his inside views should be valued.

Another favorite panel – Israel’s Wounded Warriors – was corrected to Heroes by moderator Tila Falic Levi.

It was followed by ‘Making Aliyah Easier.’ For sure, not easy. However, it’s been almost 20 years for us.

One speaker of the night was Minister of Foreign Affairs Gideon Sa’ar.

Nissam Black was the featured entertainer, caught him with JNS Feature editor Steve Linde.

Skipped the rest of the program that ran late and watched at home.

That’s it, folks…

Now back to the real world.

Out on the Jerusalem streets, Emek Refaim has been torn up for light rail construction, and buses are being rerouted.

Road work delays and construction in Jerusalem are the norm.

BUT – the signs are up for Jerusalem Design Week from July 9-16, 2026.

Tomorrow is a med-tech innovation conference at the Jerusalem International Convention Center.

Always something happening on the Jerusalem streets, hope to see you here soon.

Summer in Jerusalem with 3 international events you should see

Sharon A

A week with Israel at the center of international headlines.

No idea what will happen next.

But I want to make sure you heard of these 3 events that happened in Jerusalem, Israel.

The IDF Band and honor guard were out early on Sunday to welcome the President of Somaliland, Abdirahaman Mohamed Abdullahi.

The Israeli President’s official guest book was ready to be signed in the diplomatic reception room.

The band was playing the national anthems as the President and his wife were welcomed on the red carpet.

Israeli and Somaliland government officials were lined up inside to meet and greet each other.

The President and their wives and military attaches followed for the signing of the guest book.

The Somaliland President was welcomed and spoke of the 6 million Muslims he was elected to represent.

The lunch that followed included the Israeli Foreign Minister and the former head of Mossad, who have been working on joint relations.

The Somaliland delegation had days filled with events and a dinner reception at the Friends of Zion Center.

No wine, again, but dined in style, hosted by Mike Evans and the FoZ.

The Friends of Zion Award is a menorah given over the years to leaders who support Israel.

President Abdullahi opened the Somaliland Embassy in Jerusalem.

He expressed his appreciation for Israel being the first country to recognize and support his country.

But Somaliland was not the only country with government officials in Jerusalem.

The President of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies, Martin Menem, was welcomed to Jerusalem at the Knesset.

On Monday morning, the head of Argentina’s parliament was greeted by Israeli Speaker Amir Ohana.

The national anthems were played as the flag of Argentina was raised.

Menem placed a ceremonial wreath at the memorial flame outside the Knesset.

He took a rather long time to sign the Knesset guest book.

I went to take a photo of what he wrote in Spanish. Here’s an AI English Translation:
The Honorable Martín Menem
President of the Chamber of Deputies of the Argentine Nation

With immense gratitude, I visit the Knesset, a symbol of Israeli democracy and of the strength of a people that has known how to DEFEND its freedom, its identity, and its values throughout its history.

It is an honor for me to be the first President of the honorable CHAMBER OF DEPUTIES of the ARGENTINE NATION to make an official visit to ISRAEL, which reflects the deep FRIENDSHIP that unites both nations that share FUNDAMENTAL VALUES.

With ADMIRATION and AFFECTION toward the people of ISRAEL.

[Signature]
MARTÍN MENEM

Jerusalem, 15 June 2026
30 Sivan 5786

One more event you may not have heard about.

Sarri Singer founded Strength to Strength, a global non-profit that connects and supports victims of terrorism, bereaved families, and first responders.

She established the organization after surviving a tragic 2003 suicide bombing on Bus 14 in Jerusalem, where she was severely injured while everyone seated around her was killed.

NGO Monitor, Strength to Strength, hosted an event at StandWithUs on Monday night.

Sharren Haskel, Israeli politician serving as the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, was the keynote speaker.

The panel (left to right): Fleur Hassan Nahoum, Sarri Singer, and Anne Herzberg discussed “pay for slay.”

The PA has found new ways to continue to pay terrorists and their families who murder Israelis.

Out in the real Jerusalem streets, 5 parking spots have been reduced to 2.

The pomegranate trees are in bloom as the grasses dry out in June.

And with all the uncertainty in the world today, the summer sunsets are colorful as always.

Tourists are arriving. Hope to see you soon on the Jerusalem streets.

Three highlights from a Jerusalem week like no other

Sharon A

Was it a whiplash/12-hour/one-day/or annual June War?

Anyway, the past week was more of an unamusing amusement-park ride than the usual roller coaster of the Jerusalem streets.

Sunday threats turned to Monday morning siren alerts of incoming Iranian ballistic missiles.

Events were canceled. Some were postponed due to security situations. Reservists were called back into uniform.

Children on school trips in the north were brought home in the middle of the night.

And BOOM. The next day, it was over and back to regular programming.

It was nice to relax on Tuesday night at the Tower of David Jerusalem Museum.

The weather was perfect. Whatever was going to happen had happened.

Now it was time for – Lights. Action. Music.

The featured performer was Assaf Amdursky, one of Israel’s leading contemporary musicians.

The temporary galleries for the past year have had an exhibit on the life and music of Yehoram Gaon.

On Tuesday night, the exhibition came to life with a special concert.

With Gaon called to the stage, the cell phones came out to record him.

On the stage for one classic song – here’s one minute of the performance.

The citadel courtyard was filled with music for an appreciative audience, with the colorful lighting on the stone walls adding to the experience.

I walked home past Gan Haatzmaut, Independence Park. The construction fencing contained a picture of the future Mamilla Pool project.

Most of Gan Haatzmaut’s green area is also surrounded by construction fencing.

Construction fencing is showing future development projects near Zion Square.

At least some renovation projects are announcing completion, as seen here next to the Mamilla Hotel.

The annual Hebrew Book Week opened at Kikar Safra.

Hundreds of people, of all ages, come each night.

This statue was an interesting feature and was accepting donations.

The Hebrew books are from a long list of varied sellers and publishers.

Marking 100 years from its inception, celebrating Hebrew books in Israel.

My favorite was seeing the generations together, families, with 3 generations, grandparents bringing their grandchildren.

The Hebrew Book Week moved to Kikar Safra last year, due to the light rail construction at First Station.

The light rail tracks have made some progress, but walking, not only driving, can be complicated.

Traffic lights have disappeared. New signs pop up every day.

Another of the series on Prime Ministers was held at the Begin Center.

I recommend the talk about Golda from Meron Medzini. I found it fascinating.

Medzini was born in Jerusalem in 1932. He knew all the Prime Ministers and was her spokesperson. He spoke well, very well. Fascinating bits of history.

What a week it was on the Jerusalem streets!

President Herzog welcomed the President of Somaliland on His First State Visit to Israel this morning. It is a Muslim country with 6 million people, so the l’chaim was with orange juice, not wine.

Now we go on to see what will happen next.