My name is Yahya Mohamed. I'm 21 years old. I'm an Israeli.
I'm an Arab. I'm a Muslim. And I'm a proud soldier in the Israeli Defense Forces. I grew up in the Arab village of Umm al-Fahm.
I grew up in a country that I was taught to hate. But eventually I fell in love with Israel. I decided I wanted to give back to my country.
So even though I am not required to do military service, I chose to enlist in the IDF and join a combat unit. We want Israel! I was nervous about how the rest of my platoon would feel about serving with a soldier who comes from a Muslim background, but I was greeted with open arms, treated with nothing but respect and admiration. Today I officially finished advanced training in the Nachal Infantry Brigade, and when I stood on the ceremony alongside the brothers that I had been training with for the last eight months, I was proud to accept the responsibility of standing at the borders and protecting my country, Israel.
What made me fall in love with Israel was the resilience of its people. And I'm proud to be part of that people. And I'm proud to be me.
An Israeli, Arab, Muslim, IDF soldier.