By , Special to JTNews
The Middle East Forum has announced the opening of a regional office in Seattle to serve the Pacific Northwest area.
The Northwest office will be headed by Gil Elan, an analyst, who will focus on speaking about the Middle East both in person and on his radio talk show, “The Gil Elan Show”, which broadcasts live every Sunday on KKOL 1300, from 5 to 7 p.m. Elan has a B.A. in international relations from the London School of Economics and a master’s in business administration from Guildhall University. He retired as a lieutenant colonel from the Israel Defense Forces, where he served as a senior reserves briefing officer. During the 1982 war in Lebanon, he commanded the IDF spokesman’s unit in Beirut. He is the former head of the Washington and Oregon office of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.
Middle East Forum director Daniel Pipes said that “At this time of intense national debate over issues connected to the Middle East, it is important to have informed spokesmen explaining the issues. Gil Elan has a proven record in this area and is the perfect person to represent us in the Northwest region.”
The Middle East Forum, a thinktank, promotes American interests in the Middle East. Founded in 1994, the forum publishes the Middle East Quarterly and the Middle East Intelligence Bulletin and sponsors educational programming, in-depth regional studies and other related activities in four cities.