The first openly transgender officer in the IDF spoke at an LGBT pride event hosted by the Israeli embassy in Washington D.C. on Monday, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) reported.

“This is the right of the whole world, to be free and to be whoever we want to be,” said Shachar at the gathering, which was organized before a terror attack at a gay nightclub in Orlando claimed 49 lives earlier this month.

Shachar, who went through his transition while training to become an officer in the IDF, said that one of his commanders gave him special permission to wear a field uniform at all times, since the uniform is unisex. The commander “beat the system” by bending the rules to accommodate him, Shachar observed.

After performing well in his position at the army’s behavioral analysis unit, Shachar was recommended for the officer’s course. His commanders encouraged him to inform his fellow soldiers about his true identity, which Shachar — recognizing that keeping such a secret would prevent him from having an honest relationship with his soldiers — did a week before his graduation. His certificate lists him as a male.

In addition to establishing standards for his own acceptance, Shachar has prompted policy changes that benefit all transgender soldiers in the IDF. In the years before Shachar came out, officers were required by law to address soldiers by their biological sex. Officers now address soldiers according to their gender identification. Soldiers may also be issued uniforms in line with their gender identity, upon request. “For me,” Shachar said, “the difference was like between heaven and earth.”

Today, Sachar advises the IDF’s chief gender officer, Brig. Gen. Rachel Tevet-Wiesel, on transgender issues and serves a counselor to other transgender soldiers.

Omar Sharif Jr., the grandson of the famed Egyptian actor, also addressed the audience during the evening event. He said the days after the Orlando massacre were a “nightmare” for him as an Arab and gay man.

Omar Sharif's gay grandson speaks gay pride at Israeli Embassy #ThingsMyMotherNeverWouldHaveImagined pic.twitter.com/MRzS4pPrjo — (((Ron Kampeas))) (@kampeas) June 20, 2016

The Israeli ambassador to the United States, Ron Dermer, compared the vulnerability of the LGBT community to that of Jews, and affirmed that “Israel stands with you.”

The event celebrated the progress of LGBT rights in the Israeli military, which never excluded LGBT soldiers, although they were historically discriminated against in certain sectors. After the Knesset passed laws guaranteeing the equality of LGBT individuals in the military and other sectors in the 1990s, military leadership reportedly embraced the openness. Today, the military pays for sex change procedures while its soldiers are in uniform.

In an interview with Lieutenant Shachar conducted by the IDF Blog last year, Shachar explained his reasoning for becoming the first openly transgender officer. “As an officer-in-training I understood that I wanted to have an honest and trustworthy relationship with my soldiers, which meant I had to tell them who I really am,” he said.

For more on Israel’s strides in granting rights to its LGBT citizens and residents, read The Persistent Progress of Israel’s LGBT Community, in which Corinne Berzon discusses the advances LGBT individuals in Israel have made in gaining mainstream societal acceptance, and the challenges their community continues to face.

[Photo: Ron Kampeas / Twitter ]