Raphael Poch

Raphael Poch is the International Media Spokesperson for United Hatzalah, Israel's national volunteer EMS organization. He is also a Canadian-Israeli playwright, producer, director, actor and journalist. He also runs the First City Improv Troupe.

Illustrative: A voting box in the an Israeli election in 2015.

Forget the propaganda: Small parties don’t burn votes - opinion

Democracy was built on a simple premise: every citizen has a voice. When the Athenians gathered some 25 centuries ago, the herald opened the session with a single question: “Who wishes to speak?"

OCTOBER 27, 2026

An illustration of an Israeli voting at the ballot box.

Vote your conscience: Five reasons why Israelis should forget the electoral threshold - opinion

With a few weeks left before we go to the ballot box on October 27, I want to make the opposite case: vote for the party you actually believe in, and let the electoral threshold take care of itself.

OCTOBER 2, 2026

Terrorists use social media to slander; let’s not do the same - opinion

The method represents something far more dangerous than a single smear campaign. It’s a weaponized assault on truth itself.

JANUARY 18, 2026

To ascend or not? Rabbi and tour guide share contrasting views on the Temple Mount - interview

Rabbi Rabinowitz and Zheina Fleischer sat down with The Jerusalem Report to answer some questions about the tensions surrounding Judaism’s holiest site.

FEBRUARY 28, 2025