As Noa Cochva watched a video of a crowd led by English rap duo Bob Vylan chanting “death to the IDF” at the Glastonbury Festival, it didn’t feel like politics to her – it felt like a personal threat, the former Miss Israel winner told The Jerusalem Post on Monday.
“When someone yells: ‘Death to the IDF,’ they’re not just talking about some abstract army, they are literally wishing death on my family,” Cochva said. “And not just on mine, but on thousands of families like mine – on almost every Israeli.”
Bnei Atarot native Cochva is a long-time advocate for Israel, a combat medic for the IDF, and a former winner of the 2021 Miss Israel contest. The 26-year-old also represented her country in the Miss Universe competition that was hosted by Israel that same year.
She now works out of New York City, using her social media platforms such as Instagram and X/Twitter to speak out on issues of antisemitism and referencing her firsthand experience with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to spread awareness. Following the video, Cochva filmed a response, sharing her perspective as an IDF reservist.
In it, she discussed the reality of serving in the army in Israel, detailing how the mandatory nature of military service makes calling for the death of all IDF soldiers a call for the death of all Israeli people. Cochva urged Bob Vylan to visit Israel and “meet an IDF soldier face to face.”
Her response was not overwhelmingly well-received by the majority of the viewers.
“The [messages] I got after that were next level. I have gotten used to hate online. Sadly, it has been constant since October 7,” she said. “Saying I should have died, saying they wish I were in the Holocaust, that my whole family should be wiped out [were the type of comments that I received]. The volume and the cruelty of it hit differently.”
However, it is not just the aggressive social media comments that bother Cochva. It is also what she called “uninformed criticism” that comes from viewers responding negatively to her content without conducting external research first.
“People see one headline on Instagram or a 15-second TikTok and suddenly think they are experts on one of the most complex conflicts in the world,” she said. “You can criticize Israel, sure, but do it from a place of knowledge.”
Cochva's experience as a combat medic post-October 7
Cochva’s understanding of this topic and the conflict in general was more deeply fostered as she was called back to the IDF to treat wounded soldiers coming out of the Gaza Strip in the months following October 7. Seeing the firsthand reality of the war as it began in 2023 and speaking to soldiers in the thick of it allowed Cochva to remove any digital veil and understand the war in its rawest form, she said.
“There is no media spin in those moments. There is no debate. There is just pain, trauma, and a very real reminder of what we are fighting for and what we are fighting against,” Cochva said.
This experience also incited a sense of obligation. As someone with such a large media presence since her Miss Israel victory, Cochva feels that she cannot just sit on the knowledge she has while listening to those around her share what she understands to be false information.
Obligation to fight misinformation vs disinformation
IN LARGE conflicts such as the Israel-Hamas War, the distinction between disinformation and misinformation is vital. Disinformation occurs when people intentionally spread false information to mislead or manipulate others, whereas misinformation is spread when the actors do not actually know what the truth is. As someone who has seen the reality of the war firsthand while serving at the border, Cochva believes that she is in a position to help dismantle both forms of falsification.
“It made me more protective of the truth because when you have heard it from someone who just came out of a tunnel where terrorists were shooting at him [sic], and this is why he got injured, you don’t need permission to speak; you know,” she said.
When asked about the perceived difference between holding the Miss Israel title and any other national pageant winner title, such as Miss USA, Cochva expanded on that very sense of responsibility. While other beauty queens are often asked about philanthropy and fashion choices, the Miss Israel winner is expected to have answers to questions about transnational terrorism, the details of war, and the perpetually up-for-debate existence of her country.
She described meeting the other contestants for Miss Universe in 2021, noting their misconceptions about Israel and their lack of understanding about what was really happening there.
“When the international contestants arrived, some of them genuinely told me, ‘Wait, I thought Israel was just a desert... with camels,’” she said.
That was the moment everything changed for Cochva. It was not just about getting a crown and winning the competition her mother signed her up for anymore. Now it was about using her platform to first educate her fellow contestants, and then the rest of the world about the realities in Israel.
“When you are standing on that stage with a sash that says ‘Israel’ across your chest, you feel the weight of it. You are not just there as a contestant. You are there as a symbol of a country the world constantly questions,” she said.
The dangers of pro-Israel advocacy in New York City
However, there is a trade-off that comes with putting yourself and your beliefs on social media for unchecked consumption, she added. While Cochva said that she has developed a thicker skin and can handle the hate comments that come her way, the aggression does not just come in the form of words on a screen – it is also the threat of real physical violence.
Cochva has experienced physical attacks in the past, as she was assaulted by a placard-wielding anti-Israel protester in New York City in March 2024. However, as the war continues to develop, the risk is only increasing.
“I have been receiving a lot of threats – not just hateful messages, but real attempts to hack my accounts, track my location, and intimidate me,” Cochva said. “People have used old photos and Instagram Stories to try and figure out where I am, and because of that, I have had to become much more careful.”
Although Cochva feels the substantial danger that comes with her advocacy work, she shows no indication of slowing down. Especially after her recent move to New York City in an effort to expand her reach, she recognizes the value in sharing her voice as an Israeli citizen.
“Advocacy doesn’t always come from politicians; sometimes it comes from someone who has been on both the runway and the battlefield. This is my story, and I am proud to tell it,” she said.