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Understanding Today's Middle East: Opportunities, Challenges & Hope
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📅 May 13th at 5:30 - 7:00 PM
📍 4-370
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Background:
Jason Dov Greenblatt is an American lawyer, diplomat, and commentator best known for serving as the White House Special Envoy to the Middle East under President Donald Trump from 2017 to 2019. In this role, he was a key architect of the Trump administration’s “Peace to Prosperity” plan and played a significant part in laying the groundwork for the Abraham Accords, which normalized relations between Israel and several Arab nations, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco.  
Early Life and Education:
Born on March 30, 1967, in Teaneck, New Jersey, Greenblatt is the son of Hungarian Jewish refugees. He was raised in Queens, New York, and attended Orthodox Jewish schools, including the Marsha Stern Talmudical Academy. He later studied at Yeshiva University and earned his Juris Doctor from New York University School of Law in 1992.  
Career:
Greenblatt began his legal career as a real estate attorney at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson. In the mid-1990s, he ventured into entrepreneurship by starting a cappuccino vending business, which he eventually sold. In 1997, he joined the Trump Organization, where he served for nearly two decades as Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, overseeing major real estate and branding deals.  
In 2017, President Trump appointed Greenblatt as Special Representative for International Negotiations. During his tenure, Greenblatt traveled extensively across the Middle East, engaging with leaders to promote peace initiatives. He emphasized direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians and was instrumental in developing the policies that led to the Abraham Accords .   
Post-White House Activities:
After leaving the White House in 2019, Greenblatt continued to engage in Middle East affairs. He joined the Israeli venture capital firm OurCrowd in 2020 to foster business ties between Israel and Arab countries. In 2023, he became the Senior Director for Arab-Israel Diplomacy at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, focusing on building economic, cultural, and tourism bridges between American, Israeli, and Arab entities.   
Greenblatt is also the author of the book In the Path of Abraham: How Donald Trump Made Peace in the Middle East—and How to Stop Joe Biden from Unmaking It, which provides an insider’s account of the Trump administration’s Middle East diplomacy efforts. 
Personal Life:
An Orthodox Jew, Greenblatt resides in Teaneck, New Jersey, with his wife, Naomi, a psychiatrist, and their six children, including triplets.