Name Rafael Harpaz | ||
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Courtesy Call of H.E. Rafael Harpaz, Ambassador of the State of Israel to the Philippines
Rafael Harpaz (Hebrew: רפאל הרפז) is an Israeli diplomat. He served as Israel's ambassador to Azerbaijan from September 2012 to August 2015. Prior to that he served as head of Economic Department in the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) dealing with Israel's economic relations with North and South America as well as Africa (2009-2012). In December 2015 ambassador Harpaz was appointed as Director of the Eurasia Department at the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Contents
- Courtesy Call of HE Rafael Harpaz Ambassador of the State of Israel to the Philippines
- Meet Rafael Harpaz Israels New Ambassador to the Philippines
- Personal Background
- Academic studies
- Career
- Career Highlights
- References

Meet Rafael Harpaz, Israel's New Ambassador to the Philippines
Personal Background
Rafael Harpaz was born in Jerusalem, Israel, on January 8, 1962. He grew up in Beit HaKerem neighborhood in west Jerusalem and was a member of the Israel Scouts. He graduated from the Boyer High School in 1980 and served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) between 1980-1983. He is married with three children, and speaks Hebrew, English and French.
Academic studies
2004 Attended a management course at the Near East and South Asia Center, National Defense University, Washington D.C.
1991 Attended a Rothschild Foundation academic semester at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
1987-1988 Management course, Bank Hapoalim, Israel.
1984-1987 B.A. in international relations and supplementary studies, Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Career
Rafael Harpaz started his career life as a cadet at the management program of Bank Hapoalim and was head of the credit department in one of its branches in Jerusalem (1988-1989).
Harpaz joined the MFA in 1989 and, following the successful completion of its cadet course, served as Deputy Chief of Mission in Abidjan, Ivory Coast (1991-1993), in Bern, Switzerland (1993-1997) and in Stockholm, Sweden (1999-2003). He also served as head of the Public Diplomacy Department at the Embassy of Israel in Washington, D.C. (2005-2009), and, in addition, he was in charge of the relationship between the State of Israel and Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia.
At the MFA in Jerusalem he held the positions of Deputy Director, North Africa Division (1997-1999); Export Control Coordinator, Division of Strategic Affairs (2003-2005); and Director of the Economic Department dealing with Israel's economic relations with North and South America, as well as Africa (2009-2012).