On the surface, it looked like an innocent event — even the local Palestinian hotel didn’t think twice before renting the organizers space to conduct their workshop.
In response to an inquiry by Al-Monitor, the US Embassy in Jerusalem said, “Palestinians from East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza who have participated in US-sponsored exchange programs [such as the Fulbright or International Visitor Leadership Program] were planning to network with each other and engage in leadership and capacity building activities.”