AFPModel Bella Hadid on the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival last May
NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 13:49
Bella Hadid has responded for the first time to the controversy surrounding her role in a now-withdrawn Adidas campaign. The model, who has Palestinian roots, wore a revamped version of the SL72 sneakers, which the German brand first released for the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, where Palestinian terrorists assassinated the Israeli Olympic team. Israel reacted furiously to the campaign.
After Israel’s criticism Adidas pulled the plug on the campaign last week and removed all of Hadid’s promotional images from social media. “We are aware that connections have been made to tragic historical events – although these are completely unintentional – and we apologize for any inconvenience caused.”
Adidas’ decision was not welcomed by everyone good soil. Many social media posts accused the brand of succumbing to political pressure, at the expense of Hadid’s reputation.
The model herself has remained silent until now. Today, she writes in a Story on her Instagram account that she was unaware of the historical connection. “I would never consciously associate myself with any art or work that is linked to a terrible tragedy.”
Hadid says she is “angry and disappointed” by the campaign’s lack of sensitivity. “My team should have known better, Adidas should have known better, and I should have done more research. If I had known, I would have spoken out against it, as I have always done and will always do. I will always stand with the Palestinians while working for a world free of antisemitism.”
What happened on September 5, 1972?
At the Munich Games, eight Palestinians from the terrorist group Black September entered the Olympic village. There they took eleven Israeli athletes and officials hostage. Black September demanded the release of 234 Palestinian prisoners in Israel and the founders of the German terrorist group Red Army Faction.
West German police launched a rescue attempt, which failed on several fronts. During the hostage-taking and subsequent escape attempt, all eleven Israelis were shot dead by the hostage-takers.
The 27-year-old American model of Dutch and Palestinian descent has been openly critical of the Israeli government for years. Since the war in Gaza, after the terrorist attack of October 7, she expresses her support for the Palestinians almost daily. In messages on her Instagram account, which has over 61 million followers, she condemns violence from both Israeli and Palestinian quarters.
Hadid’s statements have often drawn the ire of the Israeli government, which she accuses of colonization and apartheid. The model is said to have shouted the controversial slogan “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” during a demonstration in 2021. The radical right-wing minister Ben-Gvir also called her an “Israel hater” after she rejected his statements. had criticized over the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Ben-Gvir claimed that Jewish settlers have more right to the area than Palestinians.
It is unusual for a top model to speak out. Clients are often well-known fashion brands that are often wary of controversy. In 2022, Hadid said in a podcast that some companies no longer wanted to work with her because of her openly pro-Palestinian stance.
