Yoseph Haddad

Yoseph Haddad (Arabic: يوسف حدّاد; born (1985-09-03)3 September 1985) is an Arab-Israeli advocacy activist for Israel. As part of his advocacy, he works as a journalist, a social activist in Arab-Israeli society, social media influencer, and CEO of the 'Together – Vouch for Each Other' association that works to connect the Arab-Israeli society to the broader Israeli society. The Jewish National Fund and Israeli media outlets have hailed Haddad as a staunch "defender of Israel" since "his time defending Israel as a member of the Israel Defense Forces." He suffered severe injuries during his army service in the 2006 Lebanon War.

Yoseph Haddad is an Arab-Israeli Orthodox Christian, who was born in Haifa, Israel. His mother was a teacher and his father was a priest, businessman and civil aviator. Later the family moved to Nazareth, Israel, where he attended the Don Bosco Technological High School named after Giovanni Bosco. In 2003, he volunteered for the IDF and served in the Golani Brigade. He completed the squad commanders course with honors and served as a platoon commander and sergeant. In a 2023 interview with the Indigenous Coalition for Israel, Haddad reflected on his service stating he was very well respected as an Arab and as a volunteer.

Towards the end of his service, in July 2006, the Second Lebanon War broke out. During the war his battalion fought in the Battle of Bint Jbeil, in which eight soldiers were killed including the battalion commander Roi Klein. As a result, the battalion was awarded a citation, however, towards the end of the war on August 10, a 9M133 Kornet missile fired by Hezbollah forces hit a wall near Haddad. As a result of the blast, Haddad was seriously wounded by shrapnel in his right footand it needed to be amputated. He was also injured in several other places. Haddad was evacuated under fire and underwent treatment and rehabilitation for about a year. During surgery, his foot was reattached and he was defined as an IDF disabled veteran. Haddad admits he struggles with post-traumatic stress.

Haddad began his undergraduate studies in political science at Bar-Ilan University but turned to advocacy and did not complete his studies. He is a graduate of the LEAD20 program for young leaders from around the world at MIT and served as project manager and operations manager at a market research company.

He lectures around the world, and in the past also lectured at an official TED event. In early 2021 he joined the i24NEWS channel where he broadcasts in Arabic and English. He also writes columns on other sites such as Israel Hayom and The Marker.

As part of the "Together – Vouch for Each Other" association, he promotes educational, social activities and integration of Arab-Israeli citizens from all Arab communities in Israeli society, such as by encouraging and supporting volunteers for national-civilian service. Haddad does this with the goal of influencing young people in the Arab sector to embrace their Israeli identity and lead them to feel a sense of belonging to the state.

Haddad began his advocacy activities as part of Reservists on Duty and works on behalf of Israeli advocacy across America, Europe and South Africa. Specifically, he speaks out against the BDS movement's boycott campaign against Israel and against new manifestations of antisemitism on university campuses. In May 2018 he established the "Together – Vouch for Each Other" association with the aim of working for the integration and connection of the Arab sector with Israeli society, and since then he has headed it and serves as the CEO of the association.

From time to time, he appears at colleges across the world to talk about Israeli society and what it is like to live in Israel. During Apartheid Week in South Africa he confronted and criticized the leader of the BDS organization in a prime time program there.

Haddad is occasionally interviewed on English-language media channels, and sometimes also on Arab media channels in Arabic. For example, he was interviewed on the Al Arabiya network. During Operation Guardian of the Walls he was interviewed by various media outlets around the world and spread content that reached millions.

In March 2021 at a discussion in the UN Human Rights Council, Iran, Qatar and the Palestinian Territories attacked Israel and accused it of running a racist vaccination program. After them, Haddad was given the floor on behalf of UN Watch and responded against their accusations.

Haddad is interviewed on Israeli media channels, where he sometimes confronts various representatives of the Arab sector. For example, he criticized the nature of a protest against Arab Sector crime rates and the authorities' helplessness, where Arab protesters waved Palestinian flags, as Israeli citizens spoke of targeted crime against Jews. Haddad is also critical of Israeli media, for example on Channel 13, when they presented a category that classified terrorist attacks as being perpetrated for "personal motives" instead of Palestinian aggression and hate.

Haddad participates in committee and conference discussions in the Knesset. Alongside his participation in issues related to the Arab society, he also participates in the lobby to prevent the BDS movement, and in the struggle to preserve freedom of expression on social media. Moreover, Haddad lobbies companies to stop enabling support for terror and incitement of violence against Jews and Israelis. Among his messages in the committee discussions, Haddad also repeats the need for the Jewish society to know the Arabic language and learn it at school.

Haddad is considered a social media influencer, and his activity on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Telegram have many followers. Among other things, he also creates explanatory videos in Arabic, English and Hebrew, which help advocacy through social media and YouTube, embedding them online as explanatory materials. Ahead of the 2021 Israeli presidential elections he published his support for Miriam Peretz.

Haddad is active in rapprochement initiatives between Palestinian and Jewish societies. Among other things, as part of the "Together – Vouch for Each Other" association he initiated the first living room memorial event in Arab-Israeli society in 2019, the first Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony in an Arab state, and the first ceremony on Memorial Day for IDF fallen in the Arab society at a memorial site dedicated to Arabs who died whilst serving. Haddad himself is invited to appear and represent at various official ceremonies and conferences such as the 2019 Yom Hashoah event in Florida the 2020 ceremony on the Day of Appreciation for Israel's Wounded Soldiers and Victims of Hostilities and at the annual IAC Israeli-American community conference in December 2021. This is in order to make the memory of the Holocaust accessible to the Arab society in Israel and worldwide.

Haddad is a member of the "Journey to the Common Valley" forum, an initiative for joint dialogue on disputes and gaps in Israeli society.

In April 2020 Yousef Haddad was selected to the list of 50 pro-Israel influencers, by SOCIAL LITE CREATIVE, and in November he was selected to the list of 40 online influencers for Israel, by the Jewish-American media company Jewish News Syndicate.

In December 2021, Haddad, alongside other figures, was awarded the "Light of Israel" prize at a ceremony by the Israeli Foreign Ministry. The winners at the ceremony came from various fields, where they represented Israel in the world by excelling in their professional arena alongside activity for Israel's image in the media and on social networks.

On December 20, 2022, he was awarded the Begin Prize for the year 5783 (2022) alongside David Averny and the Or LaMishpachot association.

On August 26, 2023, Haddad and his family members were attacked on a plane in Dubai by Israeli Arabs. The attack included curses, insults and physical violence.

Palestinian activists regard Haddad's Israeli advocacy as one sided and biased. Some criticize his speeches as 'propaganda' and label Haddad a 'traitor' to the Arab cause. Palestinian media outlets frequently condemn Haddad for defending Israel and state that he ignores Palestinian suffering. They further accuse Haddad of ignoring what Arab media outlets term Israeli Occupation.

In July 2023, Haddad was physically and verbally assaulted by Arab Israelis who identified him at Dubai Airport. He sustained minor injuries to his hand, and so did his mother who accompanied him on the trip.

The Indigenous Coalition for Israel, a New Zealand based collective of indigenous voices in support of Israel, interviewed Haddad and stated he is an asset to Israel and it's population.