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Herzog to lead Israeli delegation to World Economic Forum

Some 400 senior politicians, including 65 heads of state and government and six leaders of G7 nations, will participate in Davos.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog addresses the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on May 25, 2022. Photo by Amos Ben-Gershom/GPO.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog addresses the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on May 25, 2022. Photo by Amos Ben-Gershom/GPO.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog is set to travel to Davos, Switzerland, on Tuesday to lead a delegation to the World Economic Forum’s 56th Annual Meeting, his office announced on Monday.

The annual conference, held under the slogan “A Spirit of Dialogue,” kicked off on Monday and will run through Friday.

According to the WEF, some 400 senior politicians, including 65 heads of state and government and six leaders of G7 nations, will participate in Davos this week, alongside upward of a thousand business leaders.

The delegation headed by Herzog includes Israeli Economy Minister Nir Barkat and Bank of Israel Governor Amir Yaron, Israel Hayom reported.

The Israeli delegation also includes senior figures from the technology and finance sectors, including Check Point Software CEO Nadav Zafrir, entrepreneur and investor Yossi Vardi and Bank Leumi Chairman Uri Alon, as well as artist Ronen Tanchum, according to the report.

The World Economic Forum announced on Monday that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi “will not be attending Davos.”

“Although he was invited last fall, the tragic loss of lives of civilians in Iran over the past few weeks means that it is not right for the Iranian government to be represented at Davos this year,” the organization tweeted.

Earlier on Monday, Geneva-based UN Watch had threatened to file a criminal complaint against Araghchi with Swiss authorities if he attended the WEF.

“Your command role on the Supreme National Security Council in mass murder of thousands of protesters constitutes crimes against humanity,” NGO Watch’s Hillel Neuer tweeted. “Expect arrest, trial, and justice.”

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