Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee, widely known as the face of the IDF in the Arab world, is set to retire in the coming months after two decades of service as the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesperson.
Adraee has held the role since 2005, regularly representing the military across Arab media platforms. He has become a prominent and polarizing figure in the region, especially over the past two years of multi-front conflict. He operates widely followed social media accounts with millions of followers, delivering IDF messaging directly to Arabic-speaking audiences.
Adraee has long been a target for threats. In February 2024, during the war, it was revealed that one of the terrorists behind a deadly stabbing and ramming attack in Ra’anana — where a woman was killed and 18 others wounded — had encountered Adraee by chance months earlier. The attacker followed him and planned to kill him, but did not have a knife. He later returned to the same location armed, hoping to find Adraee, but failed. During his interrogation, the attacker said, “I wanted to carry out a high-quality attack.”
Due to repeated threats, Adraee has long been assigned a security detail.
In May, Yemen’s Houthi rebels mimicked Adraee’s messaging style following Israel’s announcement of a ground operation in Gaza. In a video modeled after Adraee’s evacuation warnings, the Houthis declared: “We will strike Ben Gurion Airport in the coming hours — evacuate immediately.” The statement, accompanied by an image of the airport, was posted on X by senior Houthi official Nasruddin Amer. He wrote: “In the coming hours, Yemeni forces will carry out military operations against Ben Gurion and other Zionist airports.”
Adraee typically uses such warnings to alert civilians in areas targeted by the IDF, explaining that the strikes are aimed at terrorist infrastructure and that remaining in the area poses a risk to life. The Houthis appeared to imitate this approach in their messaging.
Last year, Adraee sparked controversy in Lebanon after entering the southern villages of Kfarkela and Odaisseh for a field visit. Known for confronting journalists and activists who praise Hezbollah, Adraee said he came “to inspect areas Hezbollah has turned into forward military outposts.”
His visit drew online backlash. One Lebanese social media user questioned the authenticity of his visit, pointing out that Lebanese villages typically display name signs and suggesting Adraee remained on the Israeli side of the border. “Look at the mountain — there’s smoke from IDF strikes. He’s clearly not inside Lebanon,” she wrote. Another user joked: “Avichay entered Kfarkela and Odaisseh. It seems he intends to deliver the warnings to us in person this time.”
Adraee also posted a video from Odaisseh showing a destroyed building. “This house was destroyed because Hezbollah used it as a terror outpost,” he said. “This is the state of many buildings in southern Lebanon and beyond. We continue to dismantle Hezbollah’s hideouts.”