Hollywood celebrities pour support for Israel, Gigi Hadid’s post on Palestine draws backlash

LOS ANGELES: Over 700 people from the entertainment industry, including actors Gal Gadot, Michael Douglas and Jerry Seinfeld, signed an open letter in support of Israel, the Creative Community for Peace said on Thursday.

CCFP, a non-profit entertainment industry organisation, said the letter was the first of its kind and “a call from the entertainment industry unequivocally voicing support for Israel and condemning Hamas.”

Gadot, the Israeli actor who shot to fame playing Wonder Woman, said she hoped the world remains steadfast in its support of the Israeli people.

“My heart is aching for the lives lost and families shattered. I’m praying for everyone who has been affected by Hamas,” she said in the press release for the open letter.

Other notable names that signed the letter included actors Liev Schreiber, Chris Pine, Amy Schumer, Jamie Lee Curtis, writer and producer Ryan Murphy and director Antoine Fuqua.

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On the other hand, model Gigi Hadid, who is of Palestinian descent, voiced her support for Gaza earlier this week, but it resulted in backlash.

On Instagram, Hadid wrote, “My thoughts are with all those affected by this unjustifiable tragedy and every day that innocent lives are taken by this conflict - too many of which are children. I have deep empathy and heartbreak for the Palestinian struggle and life under occupation, it’s a responsibility I hold daily.”

“I also feel a responsibility to my Jewish friends to make it clear as I have before: While I have hopes and dreams for Palestinians, none of them include the harm of a Jewish person.”

Hamas began its attack on Israeli towns on Saturday and Israel’s public broadcaster Kan said the Israeli death toll had risen to more than 1,300. Scores of other people are being held captive in the Gaza Strip.

In response to the Hamas attack, Israel’s strikes on Gaza have killed more than 1,530 people, according to the health ministry in the Palestinian territory.

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Israel has vowed to annihilate the Hamas movement that rules the Gaza Strip, in retribution for the deadliest attack on civilians in Israeli history.

A separate report by Reuters said Human Rights Watch on Thursday accused Israel of using white phosphorus munitions in its military operations in Gaza and Lebanon, saying the use of such weapons puts civilians at risk of serious and long-term injury.

White phosphorus is considered an incendiary weapon under Protocol III of the Convention on the Prohibition of Use of Certain Conventional Weapons. The protocol prohibits using incendiary weapons against military targets located among civilians, although Israel has not signed it and is not bound by it, added Reuters.

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