Director in Israel/Palestine to evaluate the current situation in the light of the ongoing conflict in Gaza, July 2014

In light of the ongoing conflict in Gaza, Oliver McTernan travelled to Israel Palestine to hold meetings with both Israeli and Palestinian figures to gain an evaluation of the current situation. On Wednesday, Oliver spent the morning holding discussions with Dr Mahdi Abdul Hadi, the director of the Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs (PASSIA) to assess the situation in the West Bank and East Jerusalem and gain insights into how recent events are being perceived.In the afternoon, Oliver was invited to the Knesset to hold meetings with the Speaker of the Knesset, as well as a cross-party group of MKs who recently visited Belfast and Dublin at the invitation of Forward Thinking. These talks allowed Oliver to evaluate the current political mood in Israel in the light of the current conflict with Gaza. On Wednesday Oliver also met with David Glass, a Jerusalem based lawyer who is an advisor to Forward Thinking, to hear his perspective on developments.Throughout Thursday, Oliver will be holding meetings with European diplomats based  in Ramallah.