This Muslim Loves Israel
The real-life adventures of Ishmael Khaldi started 38 years ago in a two-room tent in a small Bedouin village with no running water or electricity.
These humble beginnings make him feel even more proud that he grew to travel the world and serve his country as its first Bedouin Muslim diplomat.
“Growing up in a tent doesn’t mean you can’t reach San Francisco and be a diplomat — it means the sky’s the limit,” Khaldi said during a phone interview from Tel Aviv, where he now lives. “If you want to achieve something, of course you are able, but you have to invest.”
Khaldi grew up in Khawalid, near the Galilee in Israel’s north, and eventually grew up to work for Israel’s foreign service, spending more than two years in San Francisco as the vice consul general.