After Palestinian militant group, Hamas, launched an attack on Israeli soil last week, international attention has returned to an on-going conflict dating back decades. Politicians, activists and even celebrities were quick to publicly announce their stance on the tragedy.
While political and social leaders likely have a firm understanding of the war between Israel and Hamas, many celebrities do not. The resulting social media posts have devastated their PR teams.
Influencers and celebrities are no strangers to online advocacy, and while many have received praise for supporting movements in the past, this time was different. Regardless of which side they found themselves on, nearly all of them faced backlash.
From Chris Pine to Dwayne Johnson, Israel has received bountiful support from Hollywood and social media stars. Yet on the other end, a number of famous people vocalized Palestinian support including Zayn Malik, Dua Lipa, Gigi Hadid and Mia Khalifa. But why are both stances so controversial?
Both Israel and Palestine argue that they have a right to occupy the region bordered by Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon. It consists of sites holy to Christianity, Islam and Judaism. Unlike the overwhelming condemnation of Russia following their invasion of Ukraine, many Americans struggle to identify who the oppressor is between Israel and Palestine.
During the age of the Ottoman Empire, Palestine occupied the region of modern-day Israel. Following World War II, many displaced Jewish people in Europe sought a safe haven for Jewish communities free from religious persecution. They fled to Jerusalem, a historically significant city that Jewish people believed they had a religious claim to.
After much violent conflict, the United Nations intervened and proposed a two-state solution, offering Israel claim to 60% of the region. Palestine declined, arguing the United Nations had no right to use Palestinian land to create a new state.
Regardless, Israel’s military occupation of the land forced Palestine into the UN’s idea of Palestinian borders. After some resistance, Israel began treating Palestinians like second-class citizens and often employed violence to achieve their goals. Eventually, Palestinian resistance groups did the same.
Wars plagued the two nations, resulting in instability with Israeli and Palestinian civilians paying the price. However, following decades of conflict, a militant group known as Hamas retaliated using terror tactics.
Hamas has responded to Israeli aggression since the groups inception in 1987. Hamas launched an attack on Oct. 7 against Israel and killed 1,300 civilians. Since then, Israel retaliated, killing 4,200 Palestinians in 10 days.
While terrorism cannot be justified, many pro-Palestine supporters view Hamas’s attacks as a response to decades of Israeli encroachment and massacre. Very few openly support Hamas, but many stand with Palestine as a state. Terrorism is not liberation or resistance, but in the eyes of Palestinian pundits, neither is Israeli imperialism.
Naturally, a topic this sensitive requires a wealth of knowledge and caution when discussing one’s allegiance, but many celebrities skipped that and spoke out anyway.
Last week, Justin Bieber shared a photo on Instagram with the words “Pray for Israel” in front of an image of destroyed buildings. The problem? The destruction depicted originated from a photo of Gaza, a Palestinian region reduced to rubble by Israeli airstrikes.
Oscar award-winning actress Jamie Lee Curtis shared a photo on Instagram featuring displaced children amid calamity staring at the sky, captioned “Terror from the Skies.” She later deleted the post after the children turned out to be Palestinians in Gaza.
They are not the only ones taking a stance. The Creative Community for Peace wrote an open-letter condemning the attacks on Israel. 700 celebrities signed it. Naturally, this has infuriated audiences who accuse Israel of encroachment, massacre and imperialism.
After Israel allegedly committed war crimes through the use of white phosphorus, cut off access to electricity and water and bombed the only safe escape route offered to Palestinian refugees, people were offended by the staunch support of Israeli troops.
Celebrities who have vowed to support Palestine have still faced backlash from several political blocs. To them, it appears that Israel is suffering from their own version of 9/11 and to empathize with Palestine is to sympathize with terrorists.
Regardless of your stance on the Israel-Palestine conflict, celebrities will continue to make it known where they stand.
