Israel's Most Visible Hasbara Influencer Is Now Running for Office

Yoseph Haddad, one of the most recognizable faces of Israel's international hasbara campaign since October 7, 2023, has registered a political party ahead of Israel's general election on October 27.

The party is called Brave Israel. Haddad's spokesperson confirmed the registration to the Jerusalem Post, saying Haddad "hasn't hidden that he's considering entering politics and has recently been weighing his options." According to the spokesperson, Haddad has registered the party with unnamed "partners who believe in his path" while continuing to hold meetings with other political and military figures about his next steps.

One of those figures is Ofer Winter, a former Israeli military commander. The Hind Rajab Foundation, a Palestinian rights organization, has accused Winter of war crimes during Israel's 2014 Operation Protective Edge and of incitement to genocide over remarks tied to the current Gaza war. Those allegations are documented by HRF but have not been independently adjudicated. Haddad's spokesperson did not dispute that contact with Winter has occurred.

Before settling on his own party, Israeli media reported Haddad had considered joining Likud, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's ruling party. He chose instead to build a vehicle of his own as Israel heads into a contested election cycle.

From content creator to candidate

Haddad's political debut is the culmination of a role he has played publicly for years: defending Israeli military conduct in Gaza across social media, television interviews and international speaking tours, even as the Palestinian civilian death toll and the scale of destruction in the enclave drew mounting international condemnation.

Haddad is a Palestinian citizen of Israel who volunteered for the Golani Brigade and was seriously wounded fighting in Israel's 2006 war in Lebanon. He later became head of Together – Vouch for Each Other, a group that pushes for the integration of Palestinian citizens of Israel into Israeli institutions, including national service, and has campaigned against the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. Haddad frequently cites his own background as proof that Palestinian citizens of Israel are treated equally, a framing that rights groups including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and B'Tselem have long disputed, pointing to documented structural and legal discrimination against that population.

His advocacy has also produced friction. During a recording of the US-based Digital Social Hour podcast, congressional candidate Dennis Feitosa confronted Haddad over Israel's conduct in Gaza, repeatedly accusing him of defending the killing of Palestinian children and pressing him on whether he had ever ordered strikes on a school as a commander. The exchange turned physical, according to reporting on the episode, though the incident lacks independent corroboration beyond the accounts of those involved.

Why it matters

Haddad's move from influencer to registered party leader marks a formal step in turning Israel's hasbara messaging apparatus, built around English-language social media and Western podcast appearances, into direct electoral politics. His reported outreach to a commander facing war crimes allegations underscores how closely that messaging machine remains tied to the military figures whose conduct it exists to defend.