Celebrities from Madonna to Gigi Hadid respond to Israel-Gaza war
Image: Instagram/@gal_gadot, @madonna, @gigihadid
Celebrities have been expressing their horror over Hamas’ attack and Israel’s bombardment of Gaza, with Bono, Gigi Hadid, Madonna and others speaking up.
Music
U2 frontman Bono changed the lyrics to the group’s hit song “Pride (In the Name of Love”) during their residency in Las Vegas on Sunday.
He called for the audience to sing for “those beautiful kids at that music festival,” in reference to the hundreds killed and wounded at the Supernova festival attacked by Hamas.
Madonna posted a video on Instagram featuring footage of the violence, adding: “Watching all of these families and especially children being herded, assaulted and murdered in the streets is heartbreaking.”
“Conflicts can never be resolved with violence. Unfortunately, humanity does not understand this universal truth—has never understood it. We live in a world ravaged by hate,” the singer added.
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Palestine supporters
Model Gigi Hadid, whose father is Palestinian, reiterated her support for the Palestinian cause but wrote: “While I have hopes and dreams for Palestinians, none of them include the harm of a Jewish person.”
“The terrorizing of innocent people… does not do any good for the ‘Free Palestine’ movement. The idea that it does has fueled a painful, decades-long cycle of back and forth retaliation… and helps perpetuate the false idea that being pro-Palestine = antisemitic.”
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Renowned conductor Daniel Barenboim, who grew up in Israel and has campaigned for peace in the region for decades, said he “fiercely” condemned the Hamas attack on X, formerly Twitter.
But he said the siege of Gaza by Israel “constitutes a policy of collective punishment, which is a violation of human rights.”
— Daniel Barenboim (@DBarenboim) October 10, 2023
Hollywood
“I stand with Israel you should too,” wrote “Wonder Woman” star Gal Gadot, who is Israeli, on Instagram.
“The world cannot sit on the fence when these horrific acts of terror are happening!”
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Oscar winner Viola Davis said anyone who failed to feel sympathy for the victims of the Hamas attack was falling for “propaganda.”
“The goal of propaganda is to dehumanize. It works to dehumanize Israelis and it works to dehumanize Gazans… This weekend reminded me how widespread it is. Because a lot of people reacted to this violence with justification, not empathy.”
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Natalie Portman, who is US-Israeli, wrote: “My heart is shattered for the people of Israel.”
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Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson said he was “heartbroken, angry and sickened” by the Hamas attack.
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“I don’t pretend to know everything about the complex conflict in the Middle East,” he said.
But he added: “Hateful acts of terrorism like these are never justified.” AP/ra
