Washington, DC: Lara Friedman has been appointed President of the Foundation for Middle East Peace, effective April 1, 2017. She will replace Matthew Duss, who has accepted a position as Foreign Policy Advisor to Senator Bernie Sanders.

Friedman joins FMEP after sixteen years at Americans for Peace Now, where for the past decade she has been the director for policy and government relations. Previously, she gained broad experience in the Middle East as a Foreign Service Officer, including serving at the U.S. Consulate General in Jerusalem, and the U.S. Embassy in Beirut.

Ambassador (ret.) Nicholas Veliotes, FMEP’s Chairman, said Friedman will bring a distinguished background in diplomacy, advocacy, and political analysis, and a profound commitment to an Israel-Palestine peace that serves the needs of both and protects U.S. national security.

Debra DeLee, CEO of Americans for Peace Now, said that while APN will deeply miss Friedman, her leadership of FMEP “is an opportunity to strengthen further the relationship between APN and FMEP and the critically important work we all do, particularly at this time.”

The Foundation for Middle East Peace is a Washington-based non-profit founded in 1979 by the late Merle Thorpe, Jr. Through programs of education, advocacy and grants, it pursues its core mission of an Israel-Palestine peace that realizes the highest values and aspirations of both peoples, assures their need for justice, dignity and security, and provides a sovereign Palestine alongside Israel and a shared Jerusalem.