He was a prominent member of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic diplomatic corps, holding several posts as SADR ambassador or Polisario Front representative.
In 1972 he got involved in the Embryonic Movement for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Río de Oro (the precursor of the Polisario Front) headed by El-Ouali Mustapha Sayed.
That year he wrote the book La République Sahraouie ("The Sahrawi Republic"), where he reviews the history and the structure of the SADR.
[5] In the night of 5–6 May 2002, Fadel Ismail died in Brixton, London, due to an asthma crisis, followed by a heart attack.
[7] On late 2002, ARSO (French: 'Association de soutien à un Référendum libre et régulier au Sahara Occidental') published another Fadel Ismail book, entitled "Lettre à mon frère Marocaine" ("Letter to my Moroccan brother"), with an introduction by Ahmed Baba Miské.