Bella Hadid, the supermodel daughter of Palestinian-American real estate mogul Mohamed Hadid, has shared a statement on the Israeli/Hamas war that’s unsurprisingly proved divisive online.
Hamas led a surprise attack on Israel by land, sea and air on October 7. Israel subsequently declared war on Hamas, launching airstrikes on Gaza. Newsweek reports that at least 1,400 people have since been killed in Israel so far, while 7,028 people have been killed in Gaza.
Hadid had refrained from commenting publicly on the issue until October 26, when she shared a lengthy statement to her Instagram feed.
“Forgive me for my silence,” the post begins. “I have yet to find the ideal words for this deeply intricate and horrific past 2 weeks, weeks that have turned the world’s attention back towards a situation that has been taking innocent lives and affecting families for decades.
“I have much to say, but for today, I will keep it short.”
Hadid referred to the “generational trauma” experienced by Palestinian families but expressed sympathy for all civilians on both sides of the conflict.
“Harming women and children and inflicting terror does not and should not do any good for the Free Palestine movement,” she continued. “I believe deep in my heart that no child, no people anywhere, should be taken away from their family either temporarily or indefinitely. That goes for Israeli or Palestinian people alike.”
Hadid also claimed to have received “hundreds of death threats” in response to her previous pro-Palestine activism.
“It is important to understand the hardship of what it is to be Palestinian, in a world that sees us as nothing more than terrorists resisting peace. It is harmful, it is shameful, and it is categorically untrue,” she wrote. “There is an urgent humanitarian crisis in Gaza that must be attended to. Wars have laws—and they must be upheld, no matter what.”
In conclusion, Hadid asked her followers to “put pressure on our leaders, wherever we are, not to forget the urgent needs of the people of Gaza.”
Many Instagram followers showed support for Hadid. One replied, “Now this is a STATEMENT!!!” while others wrote, “Worded perfectly,” and “THANK YOU for always standing strong in this Bella!!! We love you.”
Others were less satisfied with Hadid’s statement.
“Hamas is the resistance, bella and you know this but you can’t say it loud,” one commenter replied.
Another said, “Rewrite ur statement u should stand with the Palestinian resistance for now and forever.”
“We stand by palestinian resistance…who have the right to resist in any way possible against their occupiers,” added a third. “No preaching for peace until Palestine is free. Educate yourself on decolonization.”
As Newsweek notes, Hadid’s father Mohamed as born in Nazareth in 1948. His family was among 750,000 Palestinians displaced that year as a result of the Arab-Israeli war, fleeing to Syria. The Hadids moved to the U.S. when the now 74-year-old was a teenager. He later built a career for himself as an architect and real estate developer.
In an interview with the New York Times, Hadid claimed that her support for Palestinians led to some brands cutting ties with her.
“I had so many companies that stopped working with me,” she said in 2021. “I have friends that completely dropped me.”