Meet Yael Shelbia’s Parents: Ofra Cohen and Ofer Cohen

Yael Shelbia, born Yael Shelbia Cohen on August 31, 2001, in the northern Israeli city of Nahariya, is an Israeli model and actress who rose to international prominence in her late teens. She is 24 years old.

She was raised in a national religious Orthodox Jewish household shaped by the traditions of Religious Zionism, including observance of kosher dietary laws and Shabbat. Her family background reflects a blend of Mizrahi and Sephardi Jewish heritage.

Through her great-grandmother’s Tunisian Jewish roots, specifically a Djerbian lineage, she adopted Shelbia as her professional surname, a family name traditionally believed to offer protection against the evil eye.

Shelbia is the daughter of Ofra Cohen, a librarian at Harel Ulpanat, the religious girls’ high school she attended, who also works as a real estate agent and holds a master’s degree in urban planning and geography. Her father, Ofer Cohen, worked in factory supervision.

She grew up in a close-knit family with four siblings, two brothers and two sisters, in what she has described as a modest, faith-centered home.

She attended Harel Ulpanat, a religious ulpana high school for girls, where her early modeling career prompted debate within her Orthodox community. She later completed Israel’s mandatory military service, serving in the Israeli Air Force.

Standing about 1.74 meters tall, Shelbia has never been married and has no children.

Her past relationships include the model Barak Shamir from 2018 to 2019, the American Jewish businessman Brandon Korff from 2019 to 2022, and the Israeli singer Omer Adam, with whom she had an on-and-off relationship from 2022 to 2025. As of early 2026, she appears to be single.

Often noted for the contrast between her global modeling career and her religious upbringing, Shelbia has spoken of her parents’ influence in grounding her public life. Raised by Ofra and Ofer Cohen in northern Israel, she has credited their support and the values of her childhood with shaping her approach to fame and work.

Ofra Cohen

Ofra Cohen is Yael Shelbia‘s mother. She is a highly educated professional who balances multiple roles in her career. Ofra holds a master’s degree in urban planning and geography, reflecting her academic background in urban development and spatial analysis.

In addition to her expertise in these areas, Ofra works as both a librarian and a real estate agent (realtor). She serves as a librarian at Harel Ulpanat, the same school where Yael studied, which likely fostered a close connection between mother and daughter during Yael‘s education.

Her dual career in education/library services and real estate highlights her versatility and dedication to providing for the family while maintaining a presence in the community.

Ofra has been described as a key figure in nurturing the family’s religious and cultural values, contributing to the Orthodox Jewish environment in which Yael grew up.

Ofer Cohen

Ofer Cohen is Yael Shelbia‘s father. He is a hardworking professional in the manufacturing sector, employed as a factory worker, supervisor, or manager (descriptions vary slightly across sources, but consistently point to a hands-on role in factory operations).

Ofer‘s career emphasizes stability and diligence, providing a solid foundation for the family of seven. His role as the primary provider in a large household underscores the traditional family dynamics in Yael‘s upbringing, where values of hard work, unity, and faith were emphasized.

Together, Ofra and Ofer raised Yael and her siblings in a close-knit, religious home that blended Orthodox Jewish observance with everyday Israeli life.

This environment shaped Yael‘s early years, even as she later navigated the worlds of international modeling, military service (as an Israeli soldier), and public attention.

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