March 30, 2003
26 Adar II, 5763
Jerusalem

New Appointments in the Jewish Agency:
Ephraim Lapid - Director of the Israel Region
Yarden Vatikay - Spokesperson

Ephraim Lapid has been appointed head of the Jewish Agency's Israel Region, replacing Adv. Ofra Friedman.

The Director of the Israel Region is responsible for the contacts between the Jewish Agency and Israeli Society. Brig. Gen. (Res.) Ephraim Lapid, who had until now been Spokesperson of the Jewish Agency, had in the past held a wide variety of senior positions in the IDF Intelligence Corps. He later served as IDF Spokesperson, Commandant of Galei Zahal (Israel Army Radio) and Media Advisor the Minister of Education. Lapid holds a masters degree in Political Science and is a lecturer in Communications at Bar-Ilan University.

Mr. Yarden Vatikay, the newly appointed Spokesperson of the Jewish Agency, had until recently been Media Advisor to the Minister of Defense. Prior to that he had held a variety of senior positions in the IDF: Spokesman for the coordinator of Government Activities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and Head of the IDF Spokesperson's Unit's Foreign Press Branch. He had also served as deputy Media Advisor to the Prime Minister. Yarden Vatikay holds an M.A. Magna cum Laude in Political Communications from Tel Aviv University and is a graduate of Koteret Communications and Journalism college, Tel Aviv.

For additional information contact
the Office of the Spokesman:
Yehuda Weinraub
Liaison to Foreign Press and Media
Jewish Agency for Israel
Mobile:972-53-927017
Fax: 972-2-6204013