Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak Invited To Keynote Hanukkah Dinner by Alex Traiman

Sources within the administration have confirmed that Prime Minister Ehud Barak has been invited to receive an honorary degree and present the keynote address at the reception following the Yeshiva University Seventy-Fifth Annual Hanukkah Convocation in mid-December.

Barak will highlight an already impressive list of Honorary Degree recipients including the Honorable George Pataki, Governor of Yeshiva's home state of New York. Other degree recipients include YU philanthropists Mrs. Marilyn Katz, Mrs. Rae Kushner, Mr. Jay Schottenstein, Mrs. Jeanie Schottenstein, and Dr. Edward L. Steinberg.

The annual dinner serves as one of Yeshiva's primary fundraising events during the academic year, and is once again highlighted by high profile speakers. Past Hanukkah dinners have featured such pronounced speakers as: Teddy Kollek, Mayor of Jerusalem '90; William Safire, New York Times Op-Ed Columnist '91; Colin Powell, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, '92; Jack Kemp, United States Senator, '93; Robert Dole, United States Senator, '94; Al Gore, United States Vice President, '95; Christine Todd Whitman, Governor of New Jersey, '96; Daniel Kurtzer, United States Embassador to Egypt, '97; and most recently Vartan Gregorian, Chairman of the Carnegie Foundation, '98.

Barak has yet to officially accept the invitation and add his name to the prestigious list of Hanukkah Dinner speakers, but university sources speculate that all indications lead to the Prime Minister indeed attending the function, recieving an honarary degree and highlighting an already impressive evening.

The University's invitation to such a high profile individual is consistent with Yeshiva's new initiative to bring in contemporary speakers of great interest to the student body, although only a limited number of students will be in attendance due to the fundraising nature of the event.

As presently scheduled, Governor Pataki will speak at the Convocation ceremony upon recieving his honorary award. Prime Minister Barak who may or may not be in attendance at the convocation would then present the keynote speech at the dinner following the ceremony.

Aton Holzer, President of SOY stated, "I feel that this is a very positive development for our university, and will serve the crucial aim of underscoring Yeshiva's deeply felt affinity with Israeli Jewry."