Celebrities face increasing criticism for failure to speak out on Gaza crisis

Celebrities are facing increasing criticism on social media for their failure to speak out against the humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza.

Some social media users have started a “block out” in order to pressurise stars into taking a stand.

Associated Press journalist, Deepti Hajela, says the movement started about a week ago in the wake of the Met Gala.

“The contrast between the opulence and the fabulousness of the celebrities and the Israeli government starting their military operation in Rafah really raised a lot of concern and outrage,” she says.

Blocking the accounts of celebrities or influencers means not seeing any of the content they produce on social media — no posts, no photos or videos, no collaborations with sponsors.

“It's been a range of celebrities, pretty much any celebrity you can think of probably has somebody blocking them, both in the US, as well as in other countries around the world as more people get involved,” says Hajela.

The blocks are meant to affect views, engagement, and target celebrities' brands, ultimately impacting their pay checks.

Users say this is in protest against the fact that the celebrities either have not spoken up, or said enough, against Israel’s actions in Gaza during its war with Hamas.

Since fighting erupted on 7 October, following Hamas' cross-border attack, Israel’s military has killed more than 35,000 people in Gaza, according to the enclave’s health ministry.

The social media blocks come against the backdrop of increasing demonstrations of support for the people of Palestine in the United States and elsewhere across the world.