Yechiel Leiter

About the Author

Yechiel M. Leiter

Dr. Yechiel (Michael) Leiter was appointed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the post of Israel’s ambassador to the United States in January 2025. A seasoned policy expert and public servant, he previously held senior roles including chief of staff to then–Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, deputy director-general of the Ministry of Education, and acting chairman of the Israel Ports Company. He holds degrees in law and political science, a master’s in international relations, and a PhD in political philosophy. His postdoctoral research on the philosophy of John Locke and the Hebrew Bible was published by Cambridge University Press. Ambassador Leiter is a father of eight and grandfather of many. His eldest son, Major Moshe Yedidya Leiter—a medical doctor and IDF special forces officer—fell in combat in Gaza on November 10, 2023.

Sabrina Soffer

Sabrina Soffer serves as a speechwriter to the Ambassador at the Embassy of Israel to the United States. She is also a Student Scholar at the Center for Jewish Legal Studies and a Scholar at the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs. Her work spans policy, research, media, and advocacy on Zionism, antisemitism, academia, and U.S.-Israel relations, and has appeared in Fox News, The Hill, The Jerusalem Post, Fathom Journal, and more. Previously, Soffer served as Deputy Chief of Staff at the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy, contributed to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce’s investigations into campus antisemitism, and conducted research at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. She has testified before American and Israeli officials and participates in Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s Voice of the People initiative. A graduate of George Washington University, Soffer earned degrees in Philosophy-Public Affairs and Judaic Studies, where she held leadership roles as President of Chabad and Commissioner of the university’s Task Force to Combat Antisemitism.