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Yoseph Haddad: Taking Pride in Being Arab Israeli

(Jerusalem Post) Hannah Brown - Arab Israeli Yoseph Haddad is one of Israel's most vocal supporters, both at home and abroad. His basic message is: He is proud to be Arab and proud to be Israeli, and that there is no contradiction between these two identities; that Israel should fight hard against its enemies; and that Arab Israelis should support their country, and Israeli Jews should embrace Arab Israeli citizens. Haddad posts many times a day and has a combined following on social media platforms of close to two million. He has established a nonprofit foundation, Together Vouch for Each Other, which encourages Arab Israelis to connect to and feel part of Israeli society, volunteer for the IDF or National Service, and help solve problems in Arab society in Israel. In an interview, he said, "You can see that more Arab Israelis are saying, 'Hey, we're proud to be Arabs, we're also proud to be Israelis. This is our country, and we want to be here.'" Haddad comes from a Christian Arab family in Haifa. He volunteered for the IDF and was wounded during the Second Lebanon War in 2006. He was chosen to light a torch at the Independence Day ceremony this year, a privilege granted to Israelis who are considered outstanding citizens. Two other Arab Israelis also lit torches: Youssef Elziadna, a Bedouin minibus driver at the Nova Festival who saved 30 people, and Nasreen Youssef, a Druze who helped in police interrogations of the terrorists on Oct. 7.
2024-11-19 00:00:00
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