Last week, former British prime minister Tony Blair sent an invitation to the sitting president of the United States, Barack Obama, calling on him to come visit Israel next June.
Why would Blair invite Obama to Jerusalem? Well, Blair also happens to be president of the President’s Committee, an event organized by President Shimon Peres that takes place annually in Jerusalem. Every year, this shindig is hyped as a “Celebration of Shimon Peres,” but this year it will be ten times more colorful, because Peres, Israel’s most popular statesman and, indeed, one of the best-known statesmen in the world, will be celebrating his ninetieth birthday. True, he was technically born in August, and the festival is scheduled to take place in June, but then again, why nitpick? Peres is turning ninety years old, and the whole world will be coming to celebrate!