Thursday, March 28th | 18 Adar II 5784

Subscribe

avatar Alan Elsner
Alan Elsner is Executive Director of the Americas for The Israel Project. Prior to joining TIP in August 2010, Elsner had a 33-year career at top levels of journalism and published two novels, a memoir of his father's Holocaust survival and an acclaimed book about the U.S. prison system. Elsner's journalistic career began with The Jerusalem Post. He joined Reuters in Tel Aviv in 1980 and became the news agency's first correspondent in Jerusalem in 1983. Elsner's subsequent career took him back to London and to Stockholm where he headed the agency's four Nordic bureaus. In Washington, Elsner was assigned to the State Department from 1989-94 when he covered the end of the Cold War and the first Gulf War. His sharp questioning at the State Department during the Rwanda genocide in 1994 forced the Clinton administration to change its policy. His role was highlighted in several books about the massacres and his voice was featured in the movie, "Hotel Rwanda." Elsner was Reuters Chief Political Correspondent from 1994-2000 and headed coverage of the 1996 and 2000 presidential campaigns. He was National Correspondent from 2001-2004 and covered the 9/11 attack. In 2006, Elsner won a Knight International Journalism Fellowship and spent nine months in Romania teaching journalism and strengthening free media. His first book, "Gates of Injustice: The Crisis in America's Prisons" was hailed by the late Sen. Edward Kennedy as a "wake-up call" and welcomed by the political left and right. Elsner later testified to governmental and independent commissions on prison reform. Elsner's memoir of his father's wartime experiences, "Guarded by Angels," published by Yad Vashem, has been described as a major addition to Holocaust literature. It helped spark a successful campaign to build a new memorial at the site of the Belzec extermination camp in Poland. His novel, "Romance Language" which deals with the Romanian revolution of 1989, will come out in Romania next year. His first novel, "The Nazi Hunter" was described by Publishers' Weekly as "a gripping debut thriller and a compelling tale." Kirkus Reviews said, "The plot twists accelerate nicely. . . . An intriguing protagonist, terrifying historical lessons, and a well-orchestrated, pulse-pounding conclusion." Elsner has lectured and taught widely at universities in the United States and Europe, including Princeton, Dartmouth, American University, George Washington University, Southern Methodist University, the University of Rochester and the University of North Carolina. His op-eds have appeared in The Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times and he blogs on The Huffington Post.

ARTICLES BY: Alan Elsner


January 16, 2013 12:57 am
0

The Hagel Nomination and Monty Python

The furor that has surrounded the nomination of former Sen. Chuck Hagel to be President Obama's Secretary of Defense has shed a searing light on...

December 13, 2012 3:07 pm
4

Why I Joined J Street

A recent announcement that I had joined J Street as Vice President of Communications raised some eyebrows among some of my friends in the Jewish...

September 24, 2012 4:23 pm
1

Thoughts on Cole Porter, Franz Schubert and Yom Kippur

At a recent recital of works by Franz Schubert by pianist Joseph Kalichstein, some lines from the Cole Porter song "Every time we say goodbye"...

September 6, 2012 3:55 pm
0

The IAEA is Powerless Against Iran

The International Atomic Energy Agency's board of governors will meet next week in Vienna but their deliberations will only demonstrate once again how impotent the...

August 22, 2012 1:05 pm
6

Israel’s Iran Dilemma: A Plea for Understanding

What does it mean to be faced by an existential threat? It means you, your family, your community, your city, your country and your nation could...

August 8, 2012 1:38 pm
0

Sinai Attack Shows Egypt Needs Israel

The weekend terrorist attack in Sinai which killed 16 Egyptian border policemen has made clear that Egypt needs to preserve a strategic alliance with Israel...

August 2, 2012 2:59 pm
0

Two Reports from State Dept. Provide Sobering Look at Iran

The State Department issued two reports this week, one on patterns on global terrorism and the other on religious freedom and oppression around the world....

July 31, 2012 2:06 pm
0

Thank Heaven (and Israel) That Syria’s Assad Doesn’t Have Nukes

As the death toll mounts in Syria and the country slides deeper into civil war, the world should be thankful that the Assad regime...

July 17, 2012 1:07 pm
0

A Nuclear-Armed Iran Would Have No Hotline to Avert Catastrophe

In the debate about how to deal with Iran's nuclear weapons program, a steady stream of voices have argued that the best response would be...

July 11, 2012 2:23 pm
0

Heads of Civilized Nations Should Stop Meeting Iranian Leadership

Last month, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad got a rude shock when he arrived in Rio for a U.N. sustainability conference known as Rio+20. Instead of...

July 9, 2012 3:14 pm
1

Arafat Poison Story: Another Palestinian Libel

The Arabs, as the late Israeli Foreign Minister Abba Eban famously said, never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity. Last week's furor over allegations that...

June 20, 2012 12:44 pm
0

So Far “Arab Spring” Delivers Mostly Misery

A year and a half into the so-called and misnamed "Arab Spring," it may be time to take stock of the wave of uprisings that...

February 28, 2012 3:02 pm
0

Iran: Obama’s Indecisiveness Makes Israeli Strike Likely

The failure of President Obama to impose crippling sanctions a few months after assuming office in 2009 makes the prospect of an Israeli ...

World

‘We Have Had Enough’: Dutch Jews Demand Action Against Rising A...

Jewish community leaders in The Netherlands issued a plaintive warning on Thursday concerning the continuing rise of antisemitism in the...

Israel

IDF Moves to Purchase 20,000 Israeli-Made Guns as Country Seeks Less Foreig...

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has moved forward with a purchase order of 20,000 Israeli-made M4A1 rifles, a move that...

Middle East

Druze Israeli Killed in Hezbollah Strike as Tensions Escalate on Lebanon Bo...

A 25-year-old Druze Israeli was killed during a massive rocket attack by Hezbollah on northern Israel on Wednesday, the latest...

Algemeiner.com

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.