Between Institutions and Communities: Ambassador Jonathan Peled’s Visit to Turin

Turin recently had the honor of hosting Jonathan Peled, Ambassador of the State of Israel to Italy.

Il suo viaggio è stato motivato dal desiderio di visitare la nostra Regione ma, dal punto di vista istituzionale, dalla volontà di incontrare le associazioni locali che supportano Israele.

Yesterday’s meeting was prompted by the official presentation of the new “Italy-Israel Piedmont” Association, led by President Marco Zanetti. This association is a member of the UAII and aims to bring together the various Italy-Israel Associations present in Piedmont. Luigi Florio, President of Asti and Vice President of the UAII, Emiliano Poggio, President of Alessandria, and Roberto Barbieri, President of Turin, were present. Celeste Vichi, President of the Union of Italy-Israel Associations, also attended the meeting. She spoke on the topic of contemporary antisemitism and promoted the bill implementing the IHRA’s operational definition of antisemitism.

Special guest, seated next to the Ambassador and named an honorary member of the “Italy Israel Piedmont” Association alongside him, was Angelo Pezzana, who was acknowledged for his years of work supporting the association and its exchange initiatives between Italy and Israel.

This was Ambassador Peled’s second visit to Piedmont. The previous day, he had attended the annual dinner for members of the Italy-Israel Association of Turin, a different setting than his first visit, which took place about a year ago during the pro-Palestinian demonstrations at the University of Turin’s CLE. This return, too, brings with it a layering of experiences.

The Ambassador’s presence further enhanced the importance of the meeting, hosted at Claudia De Benedetti’s home and held in an open and participatory atmosphere, with members of the association, community representatives, and Israeli women living in Turin, part of the Maccabi Women Forum. The less formal setting fostered direct discussion, involving questions, listening, and concrete exchanges, and a genuine desire for collaboration, beyond the usual institutional framework.

As president of the Maccabi Women Forum Turin, I perceive this intertwining of diverse realities as particularly significant. In recent months, we have developed activities and meetings that focus on the role of women in building networks, relationships, and spaces for listening. Not as a formula, but as a concrete practice. In this sense, I always carry with me a core idea: that everything begins with education. It is the foundation of every process of growth, both personal and collective, and in Italy, Israel, Piedmont, this also translates into an educational commitment to combating anti-Semitism and the recognition of Israel’s right to continue to exist as a Jewish and democratic state.

I believe that the collaboration between the Maccabi Women Forum and the Italy-Israel-Piedmont association allows for precisely this: building spaces where education becomes a relationship, an exchange, and a shared responsibility.

In this sense, the Ambassador’s return to Turin takes on a significance that goes beyond a simple institutional visit: a step in a journey of relationships built over time.

At its core, a simple belief remains: that in challenging times, what matters is not rhetoric, but concrete practice, made up of presence, listening, and continuity.

Gilat Makmel