LISTEN: 2NJB Podcast — The Israeli Arab Who Was Wounded In Lebanon Fighting For Israel
There’s no better way to introduce our next guest than by telling you about the following tweet. A few days ago Gideon Levy published an op-ed in Haaretz and wrote “There is not and there can’t be an Arab who stands silent for the siren on the Memorial Day for fallen IDF soldiers, the soldiers who killed his fellow nationals, who conquered his land, who banished his fathers and who continue to abuse his brothers. An Arab who stands during the siren commits a lie in his soul and betrays his nation. Period.”
Yoseph Haddad, an Arab Israeli and CEO of the NGO Aravim Ze Le Ze, tweeted a photo of the excerpt and wrote: “Gideon, I am an Arab Israeli and I’m a wounded IDF veteran. I stand during the siren with pride and with sorrow every single year and think about my friends who I lost as they fought for the entire country – Jews and Arabs.”
Aravim Ze Le Ze is an NGO dedicated to connecting the Arab community to Israeli society. Aravim Ze Le Ze directly translates to “Arabs, one for another ” but is also a play on the old Jewish proverb “All of Israel is responsible one for another. We are super thrilled to be joined by Yoseph Haddad today to talk about just how integrated Arabs are in Israeli society.
Listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
Did you know that only 2% of Forward readers donate to support our nonprofit newsroom? That 2% make it possible for millions to read the Forward without a paywall or subscription — removing any barriers to the full and fair Jewish story.
But while the Forward is free to read, it isn’t free to produce. Big stories — like deep dives into the antisemitism data, political scoops or reporting trips to college campuses — take months of research and fact-checking. All while we keep you informed of what you need to know each day.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Forward Publisher & CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
