Mahdi Satri
Mahdi Satri is a 17-year-old Muslim from the Arab village, Jadeidi-Makr in Israel.[1][2] Because of his public pro-Israel Zionist views, Satri has been physically attacked, and he and his family have received constant death threats from people in his village, from Gaza, and from Ramallah.[1][2] Satri was born in Tel Aviv.[1]
Satri, the eldest of seven children, is an activist in the Likud youth movement, the same party as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Only three of Satri's friends in his village share his views about Israel, but, according to Satri, they are afraid to publicly admit them.[2] Satri's views were shaped by his mother, who is from an Arab village near Carmiel, and his father, a Palestinian Arab Muslim born in Gaza,[1] who was granted political asylum and moved to Israel in the 1980s.[2][3] His father worked for Israel's internal security service, the Shin Bet, and for the Israel Defense Forces.[2]
Satri was filmed in an outdoor Tel Aviv square, blindfolded and holding a sign in Hebrew and English that read: "I'M AN ARAB I 
YOU HUG ME IF U LOVE ME BACK". Many people hugged Satri, including a group hug.[4]
International recognition
On July 22, 2016, Satri rose to international prominence when the website BDSguide.com published his writings. Satri requested this because he feared for his life.[2][5][6][7] Some of his writings include:
- I’m writing now with tears running down my face. I had a very long trip, and I’ll continue on this trip until the last drop of blood in my body. But I just wanted to share with you my sadness, my tears, and my pain. It’s really very hard to be a Zionist inside an Arab village. A village full of hatred. I really think that the end is near. Many people are threatening me. People are promoting incitement against me in the mosques. I never ever thought that it would lead to this situation. I’m afraid to go to the shop near my house. I’m afraid to hang out in my village. I’m living in fear, the fear of getting stabbed in the street. And after that, no one will remember me. No one will remember that Arab who’s fighting for his goal, because I’m just encouraging the Israeli Arabs to stand against terrorism and to speak out. I became a target. A target for everyone. A target for the Palestinians. A target for my village’s citizens. A target for Hamas. A target for every single man in this world. I’ve never thought that to speak the truth about my beloved country would lead to becoming a victim.[5]
Satri wrote that "I want to tell you I’ll keep fighting against all the terrorists, against our enemies. The enemies that don’t want me to speak out and to stand against them… I want to tell you that I might see tomorrow. And this message might be my last message. But just know something: if I died and if they succeeded in killing me, know that I died a Zionist defending my country."[5]
His last words in the publication ended with "AM ISRAEL CHAI!", Hebrew for "The people of Israel live".[5]
Satri plans to join the Israel Defense Forces after he completes his university degree.[2][6]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "I’m A Zionist Israeli Arab - BDS Guide". 21 July 2016.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 "‘Know That I Died a Dreamer’ — Arab-Israeli Teen ‘Fearful, Yet Undeterred’ by Threats From Fellow Muslims, Palestinians for Outspoken Zionism (INTERVIEW)".
- ↑ "Heartwarming social experiment in Israel: Mahdi, a Muslim Arab".
- ↑ http://statuscope.co.il/Heartwarming-social-experiment-in-Israel-Mahdi-a-Muslim-Arab-whose?id=7bf17664
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 "Know That I Died a Dreamer - BDS Guide". 22 July 2016.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Palestinian youth stands with Israel in face of constant threats".
- ↑ "El palestino que grita "¡Am Israel Jai!"". 25 July 2016.
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