NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Bella Hadid finally broke her silence on the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine. The supermodel shared a lengthy statement on her social media calling for pressure to be put on political leaders to 'stand together in defending humanity and compassion.'
Bella said that "there is an urgent humanitarian crisis in Gaza that must be attended to,' as 'families need access to water and food' and 'hospitals need fuel to power generators, tend to the wounded and keep people alive.' Bella further wrote that even during war laws 'must be upheld,' no matter the circumstance.
The supermodel asked her followers to "forgive" her for her silence amid the Israel and Hamas war. She informed her followers that she struggled to find the "ideal" words to respond to the "deeply intricate and horrific" events of the past two weeks.
Bella wrote, "My heart is bleeding with pain from the trauma I am seeing unfold, as well as the generational trauma of my Palestinian blood."
She continued, "Seeing the aftermath from the airstrikes in Gaza, I mourn with all the mothers who have lost children and the children who cry alone, all the lost fathers, brothers, sisters, uncles, aunties, friends that will never again walk this earth."
The Dior ambassador added that she 'mourned' for the Israeli families who suffered loss and pain in the aftermath of the 7 October Hamas attacks. She wrote, "I condemn the terrorist attacks on any civilians, anywhere."
Bella Hadid addresses her roots in Palestine
In her lengthy Instagram statement on the Israel and Palestine conflict, Bella Hadid elaborated on her Palestine roots. She described her father's experience as a native Palestinian, who was born in Nazareth in 1948, the year of what Palestinians call the Nakba, in which 750,000 Palestinians were displaced.
Bella revealed that her father's family was "expelled" from Palestine and forced to become refugees. The supermodel wrote that for 75 years, her family had witnessed "brutal settler invasions" that included the destruction of entire communities as well as cold-blooded murder and the "forcible removal of families from their homes".
Bella also noted that the experience had caused "unimaginable" pain.
Bella Hadid's sister Gigi receives backlash from the State of Israel over her stance
Gigi Hadid was recently called out by the State of Israel's Instagram page for a post she shared related to the Israel-Hamas conflict. The supermodel shared a graphic on her Instagram story that read, "There is nothing Jewish about the Israeli government’s treatment of Palestinians."
The graphic continued, "Condemning the Israeli government is not antisemitic and supporting Palestinians is not supporting Hamas." However, the State of Israel's Instagram page slammed Gigi.
They reshared Gigi's post and wrote, "Have you been sleeping the past week?" They added, "Or are you just fine turning a blind eye to Jewish babies being butchered in their homes? Your silence has been very clear about where you stand. We see you."
Hadid family forced to change their phone numbers amid death threats
Bella Hadid recently confirmed the reports of her and her family members' phone numbers being leaked. The supermodel wrote on her Instagram that she had been receiving 'hundreds of death threats daily' after her phone number was leaked online.
Bella also noted that she and her family have felt unsafe. Bella and her family including her elder sister Gigi Hadid, brother Anwar Hadid, mother Yolanda Hadid and father Mohamed Hadid reportedly changed their phone numbers 'to avoid the ongoing threats.'
According to TMZ, Bella's father Mohamed reportedly 'is considering going to the FBI' because it has 'gotten so bad.' Aside from 'their own cell phones,' the Hadids allegedly have been receiving death threats through multiple mediums, including emails and social media.
A source shared with the outlet, "They've had random people hitting them up with horrific sentiments." The threats reportedly include "graphic descriptions of how they would carry out the Hadids' executions."
