Israel’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday is reported to have chosen Ishmael Khaldi to serve as the country’s Ambassador to Eritrea, in a move which would make him the first Bedouin to serve as an Israeli Ambassador abroad.
Khaldi, born in the Bedouin village of Khawaled, near Haifa, where he grew up in a tent until the age of eight, was also the first Bedouin diplomat to work in the Foreign Ministry, starting in 2004.
He has since served in a number of positions, such as policy advisor to Avigdor Lieberman, Foreign Minister at the time, in 2009, and as the Ministry’s point person against the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) campaign in the United Kingdom.
Holding a master’s degree in Political Science and International Relations from Tel Aviv University, Khaldi has made use of his extensive political knowledge to defend Israel’s legitimacy around the world, speaking in a number of universities where he has often been heckled and boycotted.
He is also the author of “A Shepherd’s Journey: The Story of Israel’s First Bedouin Diplomat”, a book exploring his life’s journey from growing up in an isolated Bedouin village to becoming a diplomat.
Ex-Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, under whom Khaldi once served, lauded his appointment, describing him as a “well-known Israeli patriot who defends the state resolutely around the world”.
