Belaynesh Zevadia

Belaynesh Zevadia
בליינש זבדיה
Born1967 (age 56–57)
Gondar, Ethiopia
NationalityIsraeli
Alma materHebrew University of Jerusalem
OccupationDiplomat
Known forFirst Ethiopian-born Israeli ambassador
TitleAmbassador

Belaynesh Zevadia (Hebrew: בליינש זבדיה; born 1967) is an Ethiopian-born Israeli diplomat. She was appointed Israeli ambassador to Ethiopia in 2012 and was the Israeli ambassador to Rwanda.

Biography

Belaynesh Zevadia was born to a Jewish family in the Gondar region of Ethiopia.[1] She immigrated to Israel in 1984 at the age of 17, during Operation Moses.[2] She is a graduate of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.[3]

Diplomatic career

Zevadia was the first immigrant from Ethiopia to enter the Israeli Foreign Service as a trainee,[1][4] working at Israeli consulate posts in Houston and Chicago.[5] In 2012, she was appointed ambassador to Ethiopia, becoming the first immigrant from Ethiopia to Israel to serve as an Israeli ambassador.[1][5] By 2016, she was the Israeli ambassador to Rwanda.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Keinon, Herb (July 2016). "From Ethiopia to Israel - and back again (profile)". The Jerusalem Post.
  2. ^ "Belaynesh Zevadia - Diplomacy". Archived from the original on 2015-12-23.
  3. ^ "HU alumna Belaynesh Zevadia appointed Israel's first Ethiopian-born ambassador". Archived from the original on 2017-06-25. Retrieved 2016-07-31.
  4. ^ J’lem appoints first Ethiopian-born ambassador. The Jerusalem Post, 28 February 2012
  5. ^ a b Ravid, Barak (28 February 2012). "Foreign Ministry Names First Israeli of Ethiopian Origin as Ambassador". Haaretz. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
  6. ^ "Israel, Germany, Rwanda in Holocaust victims' tribute". Deutsche Welle. 25 January 2016. Retrieved 8 June 2019.