The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the University of Iowa, celebrates the conclusion of this year’s International Writing Program with public events in Washington, D.C. and New York City. The International Writing Program is an 80-day, U.S. based-residency for creative writing professionals.

Programme fellows will meet once every two weeks to learn things such as “techniques of hasbara, standing before an audience...image of Israel in the world, Palestinian society and key topics in the world of diplomacy.” Fellows are promised “strategic tours to ‘burning’ sites on the public agenda” and encounters with “spokespersons and experts amongst the best in their fields.”

New Delhi: More than 50 protestors under the banner of the Indian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (INCABI) Sunday demanded boycott of a musical production by the Israeli ensemble Cameri Theatre here because the theatre group allegedly serves as a propaganda tool for the state of Israel.

Iranian Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance visited his Tunisian counterpart on Sunday. The Iranian minister said that Iran is ready to cooperate with Tunisia for translating precious Iranian works into Arabic.

On 2 November, Maltese pianist Caroline Calleja performed in Washington D.C. to an audience that included members of the diplomatic community and music lovers. The concert was part of this year’s edition of the Embassy Series and took place at the Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia.

US director for Afghan-Pakistan public diplomacy Eileen M O’Conner called on Minister for Information and Broadcasting Qamar Zaman Kaira on Tuesday. They discussed matters of mutual interest, particularly cooperation in the field of media that played role as opinion maker.

The minister said she would “like to focus on increased coordination with ministry of tourism, human resource development and external affairs to ensure a focussed and coordinated effort to promote culture which not only projects India’s soft power, but also benefits the cultural and economic lives of all our citizens”.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan dashed hopes for a normalisation of his country’s relations with Israel, on his return to Ankara from a state visit to Berlin Friday, after German Chancellor Angela Merkel directly appealed to him to reopen dialogue with the Jewish State.