At the start of their visit to Israel and the West Bank, The Elders launch their Middle East blog and plan a live webcast from Jerusalem in which they will speak with participants in Ramallah, Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

Eminent global leaders visiting Israel and the West Bank have launched a blog to document their visit, including personal text, photo and video posts. At the end of their visit, they will stream a live video broadcast from Jerusalem, Ramallah and Tel Aviv on their website.

The Elders' visit to the Middle East began today (Tuesday 25 August) accompanied for the first time by a blog in English, Hebrew and Arabic recording their visit. The blog will feature daily posts by the visitors, including Nobel Laureates Desmond Tutu and former US President Jimmy Carter in which The Elders will record their thoughts and comments. In addition to providing a personal account of their visit, the Elders hope the blog will help to connect people virtually who cannot otherwise meet in person.

On Friday 28 August, you can watch a live webcast from Jerusalem of a dialogue between the Elders and guests in Ramallah, Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

From a blog post by Elders' delegation leader and former President of Brazil Fernando Henrique Cardoso: "As part of our visit to the Middle East, we are trying something new and will be recording our impressions and thoughts through blogs and videos as much as we can. We will also invite those we meet to join and continue the discussion. I hope you enjoy following our visit this way and that this small step will encourage wider conversations to take place between communities and individuals."

Media inquiries: [email protected]