Celebrities stand for Palestine: Bella Hadid joins New York rally, Jeremy Corbyn speaks in London and Leicester City's FA Cup tribute

As violence in Gaza continues to escalate, stars have been joining protests around the world

Bella Hadid was among the hundreds of people who gathered in New York City on Saturday to protest against the violence in Palestine.

The supermodel, 24, whose father – property tycoon Mohamed Hadid – is from Palestine, was seen walking through the streets of Bay Ridge wearing a traditional dress along with a keffiyeh headscarf, waving a large Palestinian flag. She was part of a gathering to protest against the threatened expulsion of several families in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood in occupied East Jerusalem, which has led to ongoing and escalating violence between Palestine and Israel in recent weeks.

At one point during the demonstration, she stood in the centre of a circle of people waving the flag above her head, as the crowd chanted loudly around her.

Over the past few days, Hadid has used her platform to speak out in solidarity with the people of Palestine, sharing a number of quotes and resources, as well as some of her family history.

Earlier in the day, she posted a picture of her grandparents on their wedding day, as well as a picture of her father as a boy alongside his mother and seven siblings who “were taken out of their homes in Palestine in 1948, becoming refugees in Syria, then Lebanon, then Tunisia”.

“I love my family, I love my heritage, I love Palestine,” she captioned the pictures. “I will stand strong to keep their hope for a better land in my heart. A better world for our people and the people around them. They can never erase our history. History is history!”

Bella’s two older sisters, Alana and Marielle Hadid, who are from Mohamed Hadid's first marriage, joined the Palestine rally in Los Angeles on Saturday, sharing videos and photos as they marched alongside hundreds of people, waving Palestinian flags.

Fashion designer Alana shared a picture on Instagram of her holding a “Will you free my Palestine?” sign, alongside the caption: “Asking for my people’s freedom and equality isn’t at the expense of yours. We can all be free #freepalestine.”

Also at the protest in Los Angeles was poet, singer and songwriter Mustafa Ahmed, better known as Mustafa the Poet. Sharing an image of himself waving a large Palestinian flag, alongside one of his poems, he wrote: "My time in Palestine taught me that effective genocide and colonialism is a patient, calculated effort. It’s sometimes subtle. It takes precision, they weave it into the fabric of stolen land, you create enough buffer so your people can mask the truth too, so they may justify its happening to themselves.

"It is my friend Anwar attempting to buy furniture from a carpenter we met in Jericho & the old Palestinian responding, with a smile, 'We’re not allowed to export any goods out of Palestine'... It’s checkpoint upon checkpoint upon checkpoint. It’s all the stories I heard in each city we journeyed to that didn’t have the platform to reach us here."

At a rally in London on Saturday, former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn spoke to protestors as they gathered in their thousands in solidarity with Palestine.

The politician took to a podium outside the Israeli embassy as chants of “oh, Jeremy Corbyn” rang out.

“Think what it’s like being a mother or father and seeing a building bombed in front of you, knowing your family is in there, and you can do nothing,” he said.

“It’s our global voices that will give succour, comfort and support in those settlements alongside Gaza and all over the West Bank, East Jerusalem, who are suffering at this time.

“End the occupation now. End all the settlements now and withdraw. End the siege of Gaza now.”

Following their win against Chelsea in the FA Cup final on Saturday, two Leicester City players held up a Palestinian flag as part of their victory celebrations. Wesley Fofana and Hamza Choudhury, who are both Muslim, unveiled the flag following the win, and Choudhury draped himself in the flag as he went to collect his winner's medal.

Qatari football team Al Sadd also used Saturday's match to stand in solidarity with Palestine, with all players draping themselves in the Palestinian flag ahead of kick-off.

Last week, Maisa Abd Elhadi, who is known for her role as Zahra in Channel 4 thriller series Baghdad Central, was injured after allegedly being shot by Israeli police during a protest in Haifa on Sunday.

The Palestinian actress, who is from Nazareth, posted a note on Instagram saying she had been "injured on my leg" and in a later post "by the occupation's bullets".

On Wednesday, she shared another message with more details of her experience, saying she is now "recovering and feeling much better".

"I never thought I would write a post like this and I am a bit embarrassed to write this in the face of my own people who have experienced far worse," she wrote in her message.

She says she was taking part in a peaceful protest in Haifa, where she and other protesters were "chanting, singing, expressing our anger using our voices".

However, "a short while" after the protest began, "the soldiers began firing stun grenades and gas grenades and I realised that things are beginning to escalate", she wrote.

"I did not pose a threat to anyone."

Many other stars have been using their social media accounts to stand in solidarity with Palestinians, including Hulk actor Mark Ruffalo, who took to Twitter to call for sanctions to help free the Palestinian people. "1,500 Palestinians face expulsion in #Jerusalem," he wrote last Tuesday. "200 protesters have been injured. 9 children have been killed. Sanctions on South Africa helped free its black people – it's time for sanctions on Israel to free Palestinians. Join the call. #SheikhJarrah."

Susan Sarandon also used her Twitter account to speak out. “Standing in solidarity with the Palestinian people who are facing ethnic cleansing and being terrorised at the hands of the Israeli government and Jewish settler organisations," she wrote.

“The world is watching.”

See images from Palestine rallies from around the world: 

People across to the world took to the streets at the weekend in support of Palestine. At Copley Square in Boston, Massachusetts, the flag of Palestine is carried as thousands gather at a rally. AFP

In Washington, demonstrators stand at the Peace Monument near the US Capitol during a march in support of Palestine on the 73rd anniversary of the Nakba. EPA

Pro-Palestine protesters rally outside The Venetian Hotel and Casino along the Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada. AFP

Hundreds of residents of Dearborn, Michigan, gather outside the city's police department to protest against the actions of the Israeli Army in Gaza and the expulsion of Palestinian families from Sheikh Jarrah in East Jerusalem. AFP

Pro-Palestine demonstrators rally at City Hall in Houston, Texas. AFP

People walk beneath the Interstate 405 motorway as they demonstrate in support of Palestine during the Los Angeles Nakba 73: Resistance Until Liberation rally and protest from the US Federal Building to the consulate of Israel. AFP

A member of Neturei Karta (Orthodox Jews United Against Zionism) joins a protest in support of Palestine on the 73rd anniversary of Nakba Day, in Washington. EPA

A demonstration in Atlanta, Georgia, against the armed conflict between Israel and Palestinians. EPA

Young boys join a demonstration in Atlanta, Georgia, against the armed conflict between Israel and Palestinians. EPA

A woman leads a chant at a pro-Palestine demonstration in Houston, Texas. AFP

Demonstrators on top of the arches at city hall wave flags as thousands gather in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to show their support for the people of Palestine. AFP

A woman, her face painted with the Palestinian flag, joins a protest in Bucharest, Romania. AP Photo

Pro-Palestine supporters wave flags, hold placards and chant slogans as they take part in a solidarity demonstration outside the Israeli embassy in Athens, Greece. AFP

Flares are set off during a protest in Brussels, Belgium, in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. AP Photo

A supporter waves the Palestinian flag from on top of a traffic light during a demonstration outside the Israeli embassy in London, England. EPA

Pro-Palestine demonstrators in Berlin, the capital of Germany. AFP

Pro-Palestinian protesters march with a large flag during a rally in the southern Lebanese village of Adaisseh, marking the Nakba and denouncing Israeli violence in Gaza and Jerusalem. AFP

Protesters march with Palestinian flags during a demonstration in Marseille, southern France. AP Photo

Police and participants of a protest in solidarity with the Palestinians talk outside the Israeli embassy in Warsaw, Poland. AFP

People in Mexico City gather for a demonstration in solidarity with the Palestinians denouncing Israeli bombings. AFP

Smoke fills the air during a pro-Palestinian rally in Paris, France, called against Israel's bombardment of the Gaza Strip. AFP

At a demonstration In front of the Israeli embassy in Ankara, Turkey, the Palestinian flag is used as a mat for funeral prayers for people killed in Palestine. AFP

Kuwaitis raise Palestinian flags during a solidarity drive, as Palestinians mark the 73rd anniversary of the Nakba. AFP

Jordanian protesters in solidarity with Palestinians in the town of Karameh on the border with the West Bank occupied by Israel since 1967. AFP

A demonstrator talks with a police officer at a pro-Palestinian rally in Tunis, Tunisia. Reuters

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