Jerusalem, Israel; Ramallah, Palestinian Territories

On Wednesday 22 January 2020, Their Excellencies, General the Honourable David Hurley AC DSC (Retd) and Mrs Linda Hurley, as guests of Mr Yossi Gevir, Director, Governmental and External Affairs, visited Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Centre.

Then, the Governor-General, as Prior of the Order of St John in Australia, and Mrs Hurley, as guests of Dr Ahmad Ma’ali, CEO, visited the St John of Jerusalem Eye Hospital, where they were briefed on the work of the hospital, and met with practitioners, staff and patients.

Later, the Governor-General and Mrs Hurley met with Dr Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestinian Authority, in Ramallah, Palestinian Territories.

In the afternoon, the Governor-General and Mrs Hurley visited the Jerusalem Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery at Mt Scopus and laid a wreath at the grave of an Australian soldier. The Governor-General and Mrs Hurley, as guests of Colonel Brandon Wood, Defence Attaché Tel Aviv, met with members of the Australian Defence Force posted to the United Nations Truce Supervision Organisation.

In the evening, the Governor-General, as guest of His Excellency Mr Reuven Rivlin, President of the State of Israel, attended a dinner for heads of state attending the World Holocaust Forum.