Dreams of a Refugee

Mostafa Salameh was born in a Palestinian refugee camp, one of 11 children. His life looked destined to be one lived in difficulty and squalor. Luckily, a chance meeting with the brother of the Jordanian ambassador brought him to London and Edinburgh where he worked in hospitality, rising to become [...]
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Mostafa Salameh was born in a Palestinian refugee camp, one of 11 children. His life looked destined to be one lived in difficulty and squalor. Luckily, a chance meeting with the brother of the Jordanian ambassador brought him to London and Edinburgh where he worked in hospitality, rising to become a food and beverage manager at the Sheraton Hotel. One night, Mostafa awoke at 2 am having dreamt that he was standing atop Mount Everest reciting the call to prayer. Most people would have dismissed this vision but Mostafa answered the call and decided that he would climb the mighty mountain. Two times he failed before finally in 2008 reaching the summit - he became the first Jordanian ever to reach the highest peak in the world. At the summit he rang his parents and King Abdullah of Jordan - the King later knighted Mostafa for his accomplishment. But Mostafa didn't stop there - he summited all 7 highest peaks in the world, reached the North Pole and by Christmas 2015 he will have reached the South Pole. He will be the first Muslim man to achieve this extraordinary set of feats, becoming part of a club of only 235 individuals ever to have done so.Yet there is more to Mostafa than his feats of exploration. As a devout Muslim he is committed to spreading the message of tolerant Islam and to helping others in his situation to take the right path. In a world in which we imbibe a constant media diet of IS beheadings and depictions of home-grown islamists, Mostafa is actively working to turn Arab youth away from radicalism. As a motivational speaker, climber, husband and father he is a model of multiculturalism: born Palestinian, raised in Jordan and Kuwait and identifying as Scottish - his wife is a Catholic and his children attend both the mosque and church. He teaches us that we can overcome any struggle, any hardship if we set our minds to it; 'each of us has a personal Everest inside of us'. Dreams of a Refugee will include chapters on 'Being Palestinian', 'Everest, the North Pole and Climbing', 'Tolerant Islam', 'Sufism', 'Radicalization of Muslim Youth', 'Religious Pluralism' and 'Islam as Peace'. It is sure to become one of the biggest religious autobiographies of the year.