Adidas 'revising' Bella Hadid campaign after backlash from Israel
Adidas said it was "revising the remainder of the campaign" with Bella Hadid after their collaboration on a shoe to honor the victims of the massacre at the 1972 Munich Olympics drew fury from the Israeli government.
Eleven Israeli athletes and coaches were killed by members of a Palestinian militant organization during the Games. The new Adidas shoe drew attention to the massacre.
But the Israeli government’s X account pointed out that Hadid has been a part of the anti-Israel rhetoric for years. Hadid and Adidas’ campaign launched Monday.
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".@Adidas recently launched a new campaign for their shoes to highlight the 1972 Munich Olympics. Eleven Israelis were murdered by Palestinian terrorists during the Munich Olympics.
"Guess who the face of their campaign is? Bella Hadid, a half-Palestinian model who has a history of spreading antisemitism and calling for violence against Israelis and Jews.
"She and her father frequently promote blood libels and antisemitic conspiracies against Jews. @Adidas, any comment?"
Adidas issued a statement to FOX Business later Thursday.
"The adidas Originals SL72 campaign unites a broad range of partners to celebrate our lightweight running shoe, designed more than 50 years ago and worn in sport and culture around the world," an Adidas spokesperson wrote. "We are conscious that connections have been made to tragic historical events - though these are completely unintentional - and we apologize for any upset or distress caused.
"As a result we are revising the remainder of the campaign. We believe in sport as a unifying force around the world and will continue our efforts to champion diversity and equality in everything we do."
In May 2021, Hadid was accused of sharing antisemitic rhetoric. The model stated in a deleted post that Israel is not a country but a land settled by colonizers that practice "ethnic cleansing, military occupation and apartheid over the Palestinian people."
In August 2023, Hadid criticized Israel’s Itamar Ben-Gvir as being racist for comments he made about Palestinians.
After the Oct. 7 attacks, Hadid condemned "terrorist attacks on any civilians, anywhere."
"My heart is bleeding with pain from the trauma I am seeing unfold, as well as the generational trauma of my Palestinian blood. 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," Hadid wrote on social media.
"I mourn for the Israeli families that have been dealing with the pain and aftermath of Oct. 7. Regardless of the history of the land, I condemn the terrorist attacks on any civilians, anywhere. Harming women and children and inflicting terror does not and should not do any good for the Free Palestine movement. 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 and Palestinian people alike."
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This past March, Fox News Digital discovered that Hadid had been using her platform of 60 million followers on Instagram to promote controversial ideologues, like Louis Farrakhan.
Hadid's representatives didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from FOX Business.