User:Histoire2020/ISFI, the Institute of Students and Faculty on Israel, in New York

ISFI, The Institute of Students and Faculty on Israel, in New York

ISFI was established during the 1980s in New-York by the Israeli Foreign Ministry and was operated by he Israeli Consulate n New York and the Office of Academic Affairs. Its main purposes was to enlist Israeli, Jewish or other pro-Israeli activists in universities, bboth students and faculty members, throughout the USA and Canada, and to equip them with knowledge, tools and techniques that would serve them in helping the Israeli Public relations efforts or {lang-he|הסברה}. ISFI had activists on many campuses in the USA and Canada, the number changed from one year to another and from one term of national director to another. During its first steps the foreign ministry used Israel students studying in the USA or Canada, as sort of Israeli delegated in their university. These students would receive grants from the ISFI/foreign ministry in return for their activity. In this manner most of the budget of ISFI would be spend on pay checks for the Israeli students. This was one of the criticism on the organiztion, as it turned out, some of the representatives in the the universities insiders or acuintances of forien ministry officials or other beurocrats.

The most famous and influential national directore had been the following ones.

Danny Seaman

He served as national director of ISFI from 1985 until 1987 and mainly during the first intifada, 1987-1989, during which the campus atmosphere was heated in criticsm and attacks against Israel.

Moti Zaken

Moti Zaken, a Middle Eastern scholar and expert on the Kurds, studying at the time in the USA had been the national director of ISFI, from January 1989 until October 1991. He visited dozens of campuses and worked closely with students and activists promoting Israel's stance and its moral and democratic heritage. During his term, which had been the last term of ISFI, the number of representatives and activists grew and reached approximately 200 students and faculty members that would receive, in the first days of the internet, weekly mail deliveries with articles and information from the press and from the foreign ministry. ISFI also conducted weekends training seminars in several campuses, tours of cultural activity in campuses, such as the Israeli moovie star Dan Turjeman with his films, or lecture tours of excellent Public speakers, such as Professor Moshe Sharon, an expert on Islamic and Middle Eastern history and civilization from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. The highlight of the activity of ISFI was in two leadership missions to Israel of activists and student leaders to Israel under the auspices of the foreign ministry.

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