Kim Kardashian comes under fire for Israel support

US reality star removes pro-Israel tweet after complaints; Jewish celebrities use social media to defend Israel.

By YONI COHEN
Reality TV star Kim Kardashian 370 (photo credit: Henry Romero / Reuters)
Reality TV star Kim Kardashian 370
(photo credit: Henry Romero / Reuters)
US socialite and reality TV star Kim Kardashian came under fire from Twitter followers over the weekend, after she posted pro-Israel and later pro-Palestinian comments on the micro-blogging site in light of the IDF's Operation Pillar of Defense to root out terrorist infrastructure in the Gaza Strip.
The popular celebrity, who has well over 16 million followers on Twitter, decided Friday to voice her opinion on the violence by tweeting: "Praying for everyone in Israel."
This post lead to a barrage of strongly-worded reactions from followers of the star, who has Armenian roots, including one who called Kardashian a "disgrace to your people."

The negative reactions led the popular star to tweet in response: "And praying for everyone in Palestine and across the world!" If Kardashian thought that this would put an end to the negativity aimed towards her and appease all her fans, she was sadly mistaken. The pro-Palestinian tweet caused even more reaction, with one tweeter claiming that she "takes back her tweets faster than her marriages," a reference to the star filing for divorce after only 72 days of marriage to NBA player Kris Humphries.

The fierce exchange of words on Twitter prompted the outspoken celebrity to delete both of the tweets and release an official apology on her website.

"I want to own up to and explain that earlier today I sent out two tweets about saying prayers for the people in Palestine and Israel and after hearing from my followers, I decided to take down the tweets because I realized that some people were offended and hurt by what I said, and for that I apologize," the star wrote. "I should have pointed out my intentions behind these tweets when I posted them. The fact is that regardless of religion and political beliefs, there are countless innocent people involved who didnt [sic] choose this, and I pray for all of them and also for a resolution. I also pray for all the other people around the world who are caught in similar crossfires."

Kardashian's comments on Twitter were not the only ones to blow up on the social media platform. The violence in the Gaza Strip lead to an unlikely bond being formed between George Galloway and Rosanne Barr. After the pro-Palestinian UK politician urged Arabs to "turn your guns away from each other, Palestine is bleeding," the Jewish-born US actress showed her support for Gazans while blaming US President Barack Obama for not doing enough.

In a show of solidarity, Jewish celebrities have used Twitter in the past couple of days to show their support for Israeli citizens under fire. Jewish US actress Mayim Bialik simply tweeted "israel [sic] is on my mind."

Comedian and Fox News contributor Steven Crowder used Twitter to promote a lighthearted YouTube clip in which he explains why Israel has the right to defend itself.

Popular American comedian Jon Lovitz wasn't in a joking mood when his turn came to defending Israel.

Internationally recognized Israeli celebrities have also used social media platforms to show the world what is going on. Model Bar Refaeli posted on the violence on Saturday:

Actress, model and Israel advocator Noa Tishby was even stronger in her tone.

Successful Israeli tennis star Shahar Peer demonstrated how it is to take cover from Gaza attacks when she posted a picture of herself "hiding from the missiles."

It's not just celebrities that are using Twitter to voice their opinions and document the conflict. Both Israel and the Palestinians have been using the platform intensively since the start of the operation to keep followers updated and also as an advocacy tool.

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