‘Would never have participated’: Bella Hadid breaks silence on Adidas campaign

Supermodel Bella Hadid has addressed her controversial Adidas ad campaign, which was pulled following backlash from Israel.

Bella Hadid has responded to the uproar surrounding her involvement in a recent Adidas campaign, which led to accusations of anti-Semitism against the brand for platforming the American-Palestinian model.

The German sportswear giant partnered with Hadid last week to promote the re-release of its SL 72 running sneaker. The campaign coincided with the 52nd anniversary of the Munich Olympics, where the sneaker first debuted and where 11 Israeli coaches and athletes were massacred by Palestinian terrorists.

While the campaign made no mention of the tragic incident, statements from the pro-Israel American Jewish Committee and Israeli government condemned Hadid’s involvement due to her support of relief efforts for Palestinians in Gaza amid the latter’s ongoing war against extremist group Hamas – prompting Adidas to pull Hadid from the ad.

In a statement shared to her Instagram Story today, Hadid apologised for her participation.

“I would never knowingly engage with any art or work that is linked to a horrific tragedy of any kind,” Hadid, whose father Mohamed is Palestinian, wrote.

Adidas said it was ‘revising’ its campaign with Palestinian-American model Bella Hadid after backlash from the Israeli government. Picture: Adidas

Hadid posing in front of the campaign on July 11 in New York City. Picture: Gotham/GC Images

“In advance of the campaign’s release, I had no knowledge of the historical connection to the atrocious events in 1972. I am shocked, I am upset, and I am disappointed in the lack of sensitivity that went into this campaign.

“Had I been made aware, from the bottom of my heart, I would never have participated.

“My team should have known, adidas (sic) should have known and I should have done more research so that I too would have known and understood, and spoken up. As I always have, and always will, speak up for what I believe to be wrong.

“While everyone’s intentions were to make something positive, and bring people together through art, the collective lack of understanding from all parties undermined the process. I do not believe in hate in any form, including anti-Semitism. That will never waiver, and I stand by that statement to the fullest extent.”

Hadid issued a statement after her campaign with Adidas was pulled. Picture: Instagram

In a statement after the backlash, Adidas said it was “revising” the campaign to take account of the political and historical sensitivities.

“We are conscious that connections have been made to tragic historical events – though these are completely unintentional – and we apologise for any upset or distress caused,” a spokesperson said.

“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 her own message, Hadid condemned the connection between ‘the liberation of the Palestinian people’ and the anti-Semitic attack at the Munich Games in 1972. Picture: Christophe Simon/AFP

In her own message, Hadid went on to condemn the connection between “the liberation of the Palestinian people” and the anti-Semitic attack in 1972, saying that “Palestine is not synonymous with terrorism and this campaign unintentionally highlighted an event that does not represent who we are”.

“I am a proud Palestinian woman and there is so much more to our culture than the things that have been equated over the past week,” the 27-year-old, who has condemned the terrorist attacks on Israel while criticising the Israeli government’s violent attacks on Gazan civilians, continued.

“I will forever stand by my people of Palestine while continuing to advocate for a world free of anti-Semitism. Antisemitism has no place in the liberation of the Palestinian people.

“I will always stand for peace over violence, any day. Hate has no place here, and I will forever advocate for not only my people, but every person world wide.”

Originally published as ‘Would never have participated’: Bella Hadid breaks silence on Adidas campaign