George Deek
George Deek (Hebrew: ג'ורג' דיק; born c. 1984)[1] is an Arab-Israeli diplomat. In 2018, Deek was appointed Israeli ambassador to Azerbaijan. He is the first Israeli Arab Christian to become an ambassador.
Childhood, education, and family background
Deek grew up in an Eastern Orthodox Christian family in the Ajami neighborhood of Jaffa, in a building where the other tenants included Muslims, Catholics, Jews and a Catholic priest of Jewish ancestry.[2][3] His father worked as a tax advisor.[3] According to Deek, his grandparents fled to Lebanon for safety when the 1947–1949 Palestine war, having been told that the Jews would slaughter them if they remained in their homes, but expecting to return home once Arab armies defeated the Jews.[3] According to Deek, when the war ended, his grandparents felt that they had been "deceived", and decided to return illegally to their home in Jaffa rather than remaining in Lebanon as refugees.[2] Since reentering the country was illegal, Deek's grandfather, an electrician, was arrested and jailed.[3] Deek's relatives who also fled in 1947 but did not return now live scattered around the world.[3]
Deek is a graduate of Radzyner Law School. He also studied at Georgetown University on a Fulbright Fellowship.[3]
Career
Deek joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2008.[4] He was deputy chief of mission to Nigeria from 2009-2012.[4] Deek was posted to Norway from 2012-2015. In Oslo, he served as deputy ambassador; he was the acting ambassador during the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict.[4][2][3]
In 2018, at age 34, Deek was appointed ambassador to Azerbaijan.[4][5]
Deek is the first Israeli Arab Christian to hold ambassadorial rank.[4] Israel has had Arab ambassadors in the past. Ali Yahya was ambassador to Finland and to Greece.
References
- ^ Armin Rosen (20 November 2018). "Israel Appoints Its First Arab Christian Ambassador". The Tablet. Deek was 34 years old as of the date of the article.
- ^ a b c Jackman, Josh (7 May 2015). "Arab who is a diplomat for Israel". Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f g Berrin, Danielle (26 April 2017). "Within Israel's cauldron of conflict, George Deek wants to redefine the future". The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
- ^ a b c d e Keinon, Herb (15 November 2018). "Jewish state appoints Christian envoy to Muslim country". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
- ^ Rosen, Armin (20 November 2018). "Israel Appoints its First Arab Christian Ambassador". Tablet. Retrieved 20 November 2018.