‘Check my father’s passport’; Bella Hadid fires back at Israeli Minister’s denial of Palestine

For almost two weeks now, Israel has surrounded al-Shifa hospital in Gaza, not allowing people to get in or out. More than 400 people, including patients, those who had to leave their homes because of the war, and hospital workers, have died. According to Al Jazeera, up until March 19, around 32,000 Palestinians have lost their lives and over 74,000 have been injured in Gaza genocide.

As people around the world get more upset about Israel’s harsh treatment of Palestine, many famous people and important figures are using their popularity to speak up about it. One of them is Bella Hadid, a supermodel who is Palestinian-American. She’s adding her voice to the many others who are criticizing Israel’s unfair apartheid system.

She shared a video clip of a speech by an Israeli minister named Orit Strook. In the video, which was originally in Hebrew, Strook said, “The Palestinian people do not exist. There is no such thing.”

Bella wrote a message on top of the video on her Instagram Story in reply to what the Israeli minister said. “Look at my father’s passport and the millions of people with Palestinian heritage in their blood and hearts.”

She continued, saying, “Think about the land that has been taken from Palestinians over generations, the lives lost, and families torn apart. All because some people decided one day it belonged only to them.” Bella ended her message with “Food for thought.”
In another post on Instagram, Bella shared a video from Al Jazeera. The video showed many people who were hurt in Syria after an Israeli air attack, according to the Syrian military. Bella wrote another message on top of the video, saying, “The killings just keep happening. One tragedy after another. All because of one powerful force.”

After Israel’s military action against Palestinians following a surprise attack by Hamas in southern Israel on October 7 last year, Bella spoke out a few weeks later. She shared a long message on Instagram, along with a TikTok video showing the increasing destruction in Gaza and the West Bank. Then she talked about her opinion on what was happening.

“Sorry for not speaking up earlier,” the model said. “I haven’t found the right words for these last two weeks. It’s been really tough and terrible. The world is paying attention to a problem that’s been hurting people for a long time. I have a lot to say, but for now, I’ll keep it short.”

Bella said that she’s been getting “daily” death threats recently. This happened after her and her family’s phone numbers were leaked because they have Palestinian heritage and they criticize Israel. People close to her family said that Bella’s dad, Mohamed Hadid, was thinking about asking the FBI to find out who’s making the threats. Sharing how these events made her family fear for their safety, the half-Palestinian celebrity asserted that she “cannot be silenced any longer” and that “fear is not an option”.