Gal Gadot shrugs off backlash to pro-Israel comments: ”My conscience is clean”

nme.com:

Gal Gadot has opened up about the backlash to her pro-Israel comments over the past few years.Ahead of the ceremony to receive her star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame, Gadot spoke to Variety about her journey to getting the acting accolade, as well as her personal background and history of sharing her political views publicly.Gadot is Israeli, and served as part of the Israeli Defence Force in the ‘00s.

She has been an outspoken supporter of Israel during the Hamas war and conflict with Palestine, and was among 700 Hollywood stars who signed an open letter supporting Israel in the days after the initial Hamas attack.Sharing these views has led to Gadot facing criticism online, but the actor stands by her previous statements. “When your compass is clear, your conscience is clean,” she told Variety. “I know what I’m advocating for, and I know what I wish for the world.“I am all about humanity, and I felt like I had to advocate for the hostages.”Speaking specifically about the Hamas attacks on 7 October 2023, Gadot said: “When people were abducted from their homes, from their beds, men, women, children, elderly, Holocaust survivors, were going through the horrors of what happened that day, I could not be silent.“I was shocked by the amount of hate, by the amount of how much people think they know when they actually have no idea, and also by how the media is not fair many times.

So I had to speak up.”The star reiterated her personal connection to the situation, saying: “I’m not a hater. I’m a grandchild of a Holocaust survivor who came to Israel and established his family from scratch after his entire family was erased in Auschwitz.