Gadeer Mreeh
Faction represented in the Knesset
2019–2020Blue and White
2020–2021Yesh Atid
Personal details
Born (1984-06-21) 21 June 1984
Daliyat al-Karmel, Israel

Gadeer Kamal-Mreeh (Arabic: غدير كمال مريح, Hebrew: ע'דִיר כַּמַאל מְרֵיח, [ʁaˈdiʁ kaˈmal m(a)ˈʁeχ], born 21 June 1984) is an Israeli Druze politician and journalist. She became the first Druze woman to anchor a Hebrew-language news program on Israeli television in 2017.[1][2] In April 2019, she was elected to the Knesset as a member of the Blue and White alliance, making history as the first Druze woman to become a Member of the Knesset. She was subsequently elected to the Knesset as part of the Blue and White alliance in the September 2019 and March 2020 elections. She left Blue and White on 29 March 2020 and joined Yesh Atid.[3] In June 2021, Kamal-Mreeh became the Jewish Agency's first Druze emissary to the U.S., based in Washington D.C.[4]

Biography

Gadeer Kamal-Mreeh was born in Daliyat al-Karmel, a village on Mount Carmel, to a Druze family.[5]

Kamal-Mreeh has been interested in journalism since her youth; at the age of 12, she volunteered for a local TV station.[6]

Kamal-Mreeh holds a degree with honors from Bar-Ilan University, in social science and medical imaging, and a master’s degree with honors in International Relations from University of Haifa, specializing in negotiations and making decisions in international relations.[1][2]

She is married to Shadi Mreeh,[6][1] an electrical and electronics engineer. The couple have two sons.[6]

Journalism career

In 2011, Kamal-Mreeh was hired by the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation to host a program in Arabic,[6][1] focusing on the social and cultural issues concerning Arab youth in Israel. In 2015, Kamal-Mreeh was selected to host the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation’s daily newscast in Arabic, Channel 33,[1] and in 2017 she began anchoring its main Hebrew Saturday evening newscast, as well as a nightly newscast, becoming the first non-Jewish anchorwoman to broadcast a main evening news in Hebrew language on the Channel 1 in Israel.

Political and diplomatic career

Prior to the April 2019 Knesset elections, Kamal-Mreeh joined the Israel Resilience Party, a member of the Blue and White alliance, and was placed 25th on the Blue and White list.[7] When she joined the faction, she stated that one of her goals was to amend Israel's Nation-State Bill, which specifies the nature of the State of Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people.[5]

Kamal-Mreeh was elected to Knesset when the Blue and White alliance won 35 seats in the election.[8] She is the first Druze woman to become a Member of Knesset.[8]

During her tenure, she chaired the Caucus for Planning, Zoning and Industrial Areas, and the Caucus for the Advancement of Druze Women. She was a member of the Interior and Environment Committee, the Advancement of Women’s Status and Gender Equality Committee, and of the special committee for fighting crime within the Arab sector.[9]

Kamal Mreeh co-chaired the Israel-Germany friendship group and chaired the Israel-Switzerland parliamentary friendship group.[10]

Awards

Gadeer is a “Munich Young Leaders” Alumni and in 2021 was chosen by the “World Economic Forum” as one of the young global leaders.[11]

In the same year Gadeer was also awarded the knight of Government Quality by “The Movement for Quality Government in Israel”.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Rott, Rikki (12 October 2017). "יחידה מובחרת: הכירו את "יונית לוי הדרוזית"" [The Chosen One: Meet 'The Druze Yonit Levi']. Makor Rishon (in Hebrew). Retrieved 16 April 2019.
  2. 1 2 Friedson, Felice (18 November 2018). "Druze anchorwoman shatters Israel's glass ceiling". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
  3. ↑ Raoul Wootliff (29 March 2020). "Knesset panel okays breakup of Blue and White; Gantz keeps name". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  4. ↑ Abrams, Gabrielle (22 June 2021). "First Israel Druze MK". Jpost. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
  5. 1 2 Chernick, Ilanit (2 April 2019). "Gadeer Mreeh set to break the glass ceiling for Druze women in politics". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Segal, Itai (22 February 2017). "מהדורה מיוחדת" [Special Edition]. Yediot Ahronoth (in Hebrew). Retrieved 16 April 2019.
  7. ↑ "כחול לבן בראשות בני גנץ ויאיר לפיד" [Blue and White under the leadership of Benny Gantz and Yair Lapid] (in Hebrew). Israel Central Elections Committee. 9 April 2019. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
  8. 1 2 "Druze woman set to enter Knesset in Israeli first". The Jerusalem Post. 10 April 2019. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
  9. ↑
  10. ↑ The Unconventional Druze Woman Introducing U.S. Jews to ‘Another Israel’, Haaretz
  11. ↑ "The Unconventional Druze Woman Introducing U.S. Jews to 'Another Israel'". Haaretz. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
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