Yoseph Haddad Attacked After U.S. Podcast Debate, Files Police Complaint

Israeli-Arab advocacy activist Yoseph Haddad filed a police complaint after a debate with anti-Israel activists on an American podcast descended into two physical confrontations, first inside the studio and later outside after filming ended.

Haddad appeared on Digital Social Hour’s “Outnumbered” format, which placed him against 10 pro-Palestinian participants in a rotating debate. One of those participants was Dennis Feitosa, an online personality who unsuccessfully ran as a Republican candidate for Congress in California earlier this year.

The confrontation escalated as Feitosa attacked Haddad over his service in the Israel Defense Forces, calling him a “baby killer” and accusing him of killing children. Emily Schrader, who was present during the filming, said Feitosa had been “cursing, screaming, and threatening violence” earlier in the debate.

According to Schrader, Haddad repeatedly told Feitosa, “I have no interest in fighting you, why would I?”

Video from the studio shows Feitosa getting up and grabbing Haddad during the argument. Haddad then pulls him forward as their heads collide before other people in the room intervene and separate them.

A second confrontation erupted after the filming ended. According to Haddad and footage from the scene, Feitosa was initially restrained before approaching Haddad from behind. The two were then involved in another physical fight, with footage showing Haddad throwing several punches before others separated them.

“I was attacked by a neo-Nazi in the United States, but he forgot that he had picked a fight with a Golani soldier,” Haddad wrote afterward on X, referring to his service in the IDF’s Golani Brigade.

“In the parking lot he tried to settle the score and attacked me from behind,” he added.

Israeli media subsequently reported that Haddad filed a formal complaint with police over the incident, with footage published showing him making the complaint. No arrest or criminal charges had been publicly announced as of Tuesday, and there were no reports of serious injuries.

Feitosa later offered his own account of the confrontation, accusing Haddad of discussing Israeli military operations during the debate and making light of people killed in them.

“I have never looked into the face of evil on this scale,” Feitosa said afterward.

The complete podcast episode had not yet been released, making it impossible to independently compare Feitosa’s claims with the full discussion that preceded the fight.

Haddad said the incident fit a broader pattern he encounters during debates over Israel.

“This is their regular method: When they’re defeated in a verbal debate and have nothing to answer, they move to physical violence,” he said.

Feitosa, who is also known online as Def Noodles, ran in the June Republican primary for California’s 30th Congressional District but failed to advance after receiving less than 5% of the vote.