Tom Dine, a former top AIPAC official, is joining the Israel Policy Forum. Dine, whose most recent job was heading the San Francisco Jewish Federation, will serve as a consultant to the dovish pro-Israel group. He will deal with strategic planning, executive management, political action and fund raising. The Israel Policy Forum until recently was in merger discussions with two other dovish pro-Israel groups, Brit Tzedek v’Shalom and Americans for Peace Now, but withdrew and decided to remain independent. It is still looking to replace David Elcott, who left last month as executive director. Dine, 65, directed the American Israel Public Affairs Committee from 1980 to 1993. He ostensibly left because of disparaging remarks he made about the fervently Orthodox, but he also was known to favor accommodating Israel’s peace initiatives at the time while some AIPAC board members opposed them. He went on to become an outspoken director of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, blasting speech restrictions in formerly communist states. Dine joined the San Francisco federation in 2005 and raised donations by 7 percent, but left in June saying it was not a “good fit.” He is based in Washington.
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