Israel-Palestine

An Amy Winehouse statue in London has been defaced -- with protestors covering up the statue's Star of David necklace with a Palestinian flag, causing outrage among some ... but not necessarily in her own family.

Pro-Palestine demonstrators besmirched the late singer's statue over the weekend during a massive protest in London ... with someone placing a sticker of the Palestinian flag on Amy's likeness.

The statue features Amy wearing a Star of David necklace, a symbol of Jewish identity and Judaism, and the Palestine flag sticker covered up the pendant. Amy was British and Jewish.

Naturally, the internet is outraged ... with folks calling the vandalism disgraceful, revolting and antisemitic.

Mitch Winehouse -- Amy's dad and the administrator of her estate -- however is taking a more measured response, telling TMZ ... "It's not very nice but it was just a sticker."

Amy's bronze statue in London's Camden Market was unveiled in 2014, a couple years after her 2011 death, and fans often leave flowers to pay their respects.

Dos de los últimos conciertos de Matisyahu fueron cancelados y él está teorizando que las cancelaciones podrían haber sido causadas por algunos trabajadores que hacen declaraciones políticas contra Israel.

El cantante y compositor se unió a nosotros en "TMZ Live" el jueves, diciéndonos que su espectáculo con entradas agotadas en Nuevo México fue cancelado apenas unas horas antes de que el telón estuviera listo para subir, algo de lo que se enteró a última hora.

Como Matisyahu -un partidario muy vocal de la causa israelí en Gaza- lo explicó, un fan se acercó a él después de que ya había realizado una prueba de sonido en el Meow Wolf, y dijo que había recibido un correo electrónico diciendo que el concierto fue cancelado debido a las amenazas de seguridad.

Cuando su equipo se dirigió a los organizadores del evento, Matisyahu dice que le dijeron que los trabajadores tenían miedo de ir a trabajar debido a posibles protestas fuera del edificio y que no tendrían tiempo de contratar a más personal para el evento.

La protesta no exactamente multitudinaria, solo alrededor de cinco personasestaban ahí para expresar su descontento, de acuerdo con Matis. Así que en realidad no fue una amenaza.

No es el único espectáculo que ha sido cancelado, Matisyahu dice que su show de esta noche en Tucson Arizona tampoco se llevará a cabo porque supuestamente los emp´leados están cabreados.

Matisyahu dice que los trabajadores podrían haberse dado cuenta de que el evento tendría que ser cancelado si decidían no llegar a trabajar, añadiendo mensajes en las redes sociales de algunos de los empleados de Nuevo México que dejaron claro que estaban en contra de Israel.

Matisyahu insiste en que no está empujando su política en sus espectáculos, admitiendo que a veces hace declaraciones en contra de Hamás, pero mantiene la división política fuera de sus actuaciones en su mayor parte.

Si los boicoteadores tienen la esperanza de desalentar a Matisyahu, no está funcionando, y dicie que está dispuesto a tocar en cualquier lugar dispuesto a acogerlo a él y a su grupo. Incluso mencionó a su primo, que estudia en Tucson, y dijo que daría un concierto en una fraternidad si estaban interesados.

Por supuesto, las tensiones han sido especialmente altas entre los seguidores israelíes y palestinos desde que un ataque sorpresa de Hamás en un festival de música el 7 de octubre desató una guerra total en la región.

Two of Matisyahu's recent concerts got canceled ... and he's theorizing the cancelations might've been caused by some workers making a political statement against Israel.

The singer-songwriter joined us on "TMZ Live" Thursday ... telling us his sold-out show in New Mexico was canceled just hours before the curtain was set to go up -- something he learned about very last minute.

As Matisyahu -- a very vocal supporter of the Israeli cause in Gaza -- explained it ... a fan approached him after he'd already performed a sound check in the Meow Wolf venue and said they had received an email saying the concert was called off because of security threats.

When his team approached the event organizers about it, Matisyahu says they told him workers were afraid to come to work because of possible protests outside the building and that they wouldn't have time to hire more staffers for the event.

BTW ... the protest didn't exactly take off -- with just about five people showing up, apparently, to voice their displeasure according to Matis. So, hardly a threat, really.

It's not the only show that's been canceled, as it turns out ... Matisyahu says his show tonight in Tucson, Arizona, is also not happening because employees there are also allegedly calling out.

The possible reasoning behind this ... Matisyahu says he thinks workers might've realized the event would have to be called off if they decided not to arrive for work -- adding social media posts of some of the New Mexico staff made it clear they stood against Israel.

Matisyahu insists he's not pushing his politics at his shows ... admitting he sometimes makes statements against Hamas but keeps political division out of his performances for the most part.

If boycotters are hoping to discourage Matisyahu ... it's not working so far, with him saying he's willing to play at any venue willing to host him and his group. He even mentioned his cousin who goes to school in Tucson -- and said he'd put on a show at a frat house if they're interested!

Of course, tensions have been especially high between Israeli and Palestinian supporters since a surprise attack by Hamas on a music festival on October 7 sparked a full-on war in the region.

Selma Blair is apologizing for an Islamophobic comment she made on social media ... and she's promising to do better.

Here's the deal ... Selma went viral last week and started catching tons of flak after commenting on an Instagram post about Congresswomen Rashida Tlaib and Cori Bush voting against a measure banning Hamas terrorists from immigrating to the U.S.

In her since-deleted comment, Selma wrote ... "Deport all these terrorist supporting goons. Islam has destroyed Muslim countries and then they come here and destroy minds. They know they are liars. Twisted justifications. May they meet their fate."

Selma took a ton of heat from folks who said she was a raging, Islamophobic bigot.

In an apology shared Tuesday on IG, Selma says ... "I mistakenly and inadvertently conflated Muslims with Radical Islamists and fundamentalists, a terrible err in my words, and resulted in hurting countless people I never meant to, and I deeply regret this."

Selma says she deleted her comment after she realized she was amplifying hate and misinformation ... and says she now understands why she upset the Muslim community.

President Biden's seemingly trying to win over a key voting block in Michigan ... and a war going on a world away is playing a huge role, including some new policies he's enforcing.

POTUS is making a few stops in Michigan this week -- an important swing state in the 2024 presidential election -- and it looks like he's trying to win over Arab American and Muslim voters who are outraged over the war between Israel and Palestine.

Coincidentally or not, Biden's Michigan trip comes the same time he signed an executive order allowing the United States to sanction Israeli settlers, and potentially Israeli government officials, who are involved in violent attacks against Palestinians in Gaza.

Biden's been under fire in Michigan for his support for Israel ... and there's a huge Arab American population in the state, and they're threatening to pull the support at the ballot box.

There were even protests outside Biden's campaign stops in Michigan ... but it doesn't look like anything was disrupted, although the scenes were tense.

On its face, it looks like Biden might've timed the signing of this EO so he had something tangible to show voters in Michigan who support Palestine ... so he doesn't lose their vote to a third party, or worse, Donald Trump. That's how some are interpreting it, anyway.

At the same time, Biden's said to be running thin on patience with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ... so it seems the winds may be changing when it comes to Gaza.

Biden really needs Michigan to stave off Trump ... and it looks like the political posturing is in full swing as we march toward November.

Brett Gelman doesn't see anything in Netflix costar Noah Schnapp's views on Israel that warrants an apology ... and he's not afraid to speak his mind about what's going on in Gaza.

We got the "Stranger Things" star at LAX and our photog asked him about Noah sharing a video restating his position on the Israel-Hamas War.

Brett says he actually liked the viral photos of Noah with stickers reading "Zionism is sexy" and agreed with Noah calling out Hamas as a terrorist organization.

BG goes even further ... telling us anyone who is not pro-Israel is consciously or subconsciously being antisemitic.

To be clear, Brett says he's not blindly for everything that's going on in Israel, acknowledging there are some issues just as there are in every country and telling us he's not a fan of Benjamin Netanyahu ... but Brett says he supports Israel and the Israeli people.

Brett says Israel has the right to defend itself against Hamas attacks ... he says he's been over to Israel recently and there are still being rockets launched by Hamas, who he also accuses of using civilians as human shields.

Noah's message was about unity, hope and peace ... and Brett says he's staunchly against the death of innocent Palestinians, but wonders why those deaths are being blamed on Israel and not Hamas.

It's rare to see a celebrity being so open about the Middle East these days ... but Brett's not shying away.

Brett Gelman no ve nada en las opiniones sobre Israel de su compañero de reparto de Netflix Noah Schnapp que justifique una disculpa, y no tiene miedo de decir lo que piensa sobre lo que está pasando en Gaza.

Nos encontramos con la estrella de "Stranger Things" en LAX y nuestro fotógrafo le preguntó sobre el video de Noah en donde reafirma su posición sobre la guerra de Israel y Hamás.

Brett dice que le gustaban las fotos virales de Noé con las pegatinas "El sionismo es sexy" y que estaba de acuerdo con que el actor llamara a Hamás como una organización terrorista.

Brett va aún más lejos y nos dice que cualquiera que no sea pro-Israel es consciente o inconscientemente antisemita.

Para ser claros, Brett dice que no está ciegamente a favor de todo lo que está pasando en Israel, reconoce que hay algunos problemas, al igual que en todos los países y nos dice que no es un fan de Benjamin Netanyahu, pero dice que apoya a Israel y al pueblo israelí.

Dice que Israel tiene derecho a defenderse de los ataques de Hamás y que ha estado en Israel recientemente y que todavía hay cohetes que son lanzados por ellos, a quienes también acusa de utilizar a civiles como escudos humanos.

El mensaje de Noah fue sobre la unidad, la esperanza y la paz y Brett dice que está incondicionalmente en contra de la muerte de palestinos inocentes, pero se pregunta por qué se culpa de esas muertes a Israel y no a Hamás.

Es raro ver a una celebridad ser tan abierta sobre lo que pasa en Medio Oriente por estos días, pero Brett no se asusta.

Mia Khalifa found herself in a heated showdown with a Jewish mother ... over her controversial pro-Hamas thoughts.

The porn star-turned-influencer recorded the tense exchange outside Miami International Airport, showing the woman repeating the words "Am Yisrael Chai" -- a Hebrew term meaning "the people of Israel live," and a clear show of solidarity among Jewish people.

Mia opted not to debate the Middle East conflict with the woman, and instead tried to get under her skin by sarcastically asking if she was waiting for a bus ... while Mia bragged she was waiting for her valet.

But, the woman relentlessly chanted the phrase while her son looked visibly embarrassed -- and Mia retorted with a savage crack about the woman having bad breath.

Mia proudly posted the video, claiming Zionists were losing the plot and the woman was calling her slurs inside the airport ... which was not captured on camera.

She's clearly sticking by her pro-Hamas thoughts, which got her fired from Playboy in October ... as the outlet said it has "a zero-tolerance policy for hate speech."

Despite the blowback, Mia doubled down ... writing at the time, "I'd say supporting Palestine has lost me business opportunities, but I'm more angry at myself for not checking whether or not I was entering into business with Zionists."

Mia Khalifa se vio envuelta en un acalorado enfrentamiento con una madre judía por sus controvertidos pensamientos a favor de Hamás.

La estrella del porno convertida en influencer grabó el tenso intercambio fuera del Aeropuerto Internacional de Miami, mostrando a la mujer repitiendo las palabras "Am Yisrael Chai" —un término hebreo que significa "el pueblo de Israel vive"— y una clara muestra de solidaridad entre el pueblo judío.

Mia optó por no debatir el conflicto de Oriente Medio con la mujer y en su lugar trató de meterse en su piel con sarcasmo, preguntando si estaba esperando un autobús, mientras que Mia se jactó de que estaba esperando a su equipo de cámara.

Sin embargo, la mujer coreó sin cesar la frase mientras su hijo parecía visiblemente avergonzado... luego Mia se refirió al mal aliento de la mujer.

Mia publicó con orgullo el video, alegando que los sionistas estaban perdiendo el norte mientras la mujer seguía gritando en el aeropuerto, lo cual no pudo ser capturado en video.

Está claro que si sus pensamientos pro-Hamás fue lo que hizo que la despidieran de Playboy en octubre, ya que dijeron tener: "una política de tolerancia cero para el discurso de odio".

A pesar de la reacción, Mia se retractó, escribiendo: "Yo diría que apoyar a Palestina me ha hecho perder oportunidades de negocio, pero estoy más enojada conmigo misma por no comprobar si estaba o no entrando en negocios con sionistas."

Noah Schnapp dice que sus pensamientos sobre el conflicto entre Israel y Hamás se están tergiversando en línea, por lo que se tomó un par de minutos para reformular su posición sobre la violencia.

El actor ha atraído importantes reacciones desde que el conflicto comenzó en octubre de 2023, ya que la estrella de "Stranger Things" al parecer apoyó las acciones violentas de Hamás en un video ahora borrado, mientras que otro registro visual lo mostraba con pegatinas que decían "El sionismo es sexy" (Zionism is sexy).

Noah intentó aclarar el asunto el lunes en TikTok, afirmando que lo que realmente quiere es paz, seguridad y protección para todas las personas inocentes afectadas por el conflicto.

Añade que ha aprendido mucho después de tener discusiones abiertas y esenciales con sus amigos palestinos. Ambas partes están unidas en su esperanza de que los inocentes rehenes retenidos en Gaza sean devueltos a sus familias, y también en que la matanza de palestinos inocentes termine.

Noah también dijo que espera más comprensión y compasión, independientemente de la raza, etnia, origen y sexualidad, concluyendo: "Todos somos humanos y todos somos iguales, y todos debemos amarnos unos a otros por eso y apoyarnos unos a otros y unirnos. Y permanecer unidos por la humanidad y por la paz".

La reacción a la opinión de Noah sobre la guerra ha tenido a la gente pidiendo un boicot a "Stranger Things" desde hace un tiempo, por lo que muchos en línea simplemente piensan que está dando marcha atrás para hacer control de daños a medida que comienza la producción de la 5ª temporada de la serie.

Noah Schnapp says his thoughts on the conflict between Israel and Hamas are getting twisted online ... so, he took a couple minutes to restate his position on the violence.

The actor, who is Jewish, has drawn significant backlash since the conflict began in October 2023 ... as he, at least, appeared to support Hamas' violent actions in a now-deleted video while another showed him with "Zionism is sexy" stickers.

He tried to clarify Monday on TikTok, stating what he really wants is peace, safety, and security for all innocent people affected by the conflict.

He adds he's learned a lot after having open and essential discussions with his Palestinian friends ... both sides unified in their hope to have innocent hostages held in Gaza returned to their families, and also for the killing of innocent Palestinians to end.

Noah also said he hopes for more understanding and compassion regardless of race, ethnicity, background and sexuality, concluding ... "We are all human, and we're all the same, and we should all love each other for that and support each other and stand together. And stand together for humanity and for peace."

The backlash to Noah's view on the war has had people calling for a "Stranger Things" boycott for a while now -- so, many online think he's merely backpedaling to do damage control as production begins for the 5th season of his sci-fi show.

'ST' has regularly broken Netflix records with their previous seasons ... so it'll be interesting to see how this controversy affects ratings.

Melissa Barrera's been screaming her support of Palestine from the rooftops -- which led to her getting 86'd from the 'Scream' franchise -- but it looks like her former cast members still have her back.

The actress reunited with her former costars Sunday night at the Motion Picture and Television Fund's 17th Annual Evening Before Gala ... and Jenna Ortega was standing right by her, literally and figuratively.

Remember, Melissa was fired back in November from the 7th installment of the horror franchise over her Israel-Palestine posts.

Jenna appeared to like a post on Melissa doubling down on her pro-Palestine stance at the time of her firing ... and she too dropped out of the new 'Scream' movie -- though it was apparently due to a schedule clash with Netflix's "Wednesday" and not cause of MB's firing.

But Jenna's support was loud and clear in the new IG snaps shared by Melissa ... where she was also joined by her other  'Scream' costars Mason Gooding, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Liana Liberato, Tony Revolori, Skeet Ulrich, and Jack Quaid -- who all appeared to have her back, too.

As we reported ... Melissa doubled down on her pro-Palestine stance over Xmas while the 'Scream' Empire collapsed with director Christopher Landon also walking away from the new movie.

While Spyglass lost their 2 big leads and their director ... Neve Campbell recently teased a possible return to the franchise as Sidney Prescott -- only for the right amount of money, though.

She initially left the franchise due to pay disagreements, so that doesn't come as a shock -- but she ain't biting the hand that feeds her ... saying at Saturday's BAFTA Tea Party in L.A. she was sad the higher-ups at 'Scream' were struggling.

Adult film producer and porn star Michael Lucas is getting some serious blowback from some people in his industry for writing his name on a missile targeted for Hamas.

Lucas posted earlier this month, "Hahaha I actually asked to write my name," and he included a pic of his John Hancock on the rocket.

Several porn stars have said they will no longer work for his studio. Shahrokh Mosavinejad fired back, "Anyone who thinks writing notes on missiles is some kind of sick flex is an accessory to murder and genocide of innocent #Palestinian civilians in my book."

Porn star Sean Xavier wrote, "I don’t want to draw more attention to the post; I find it both saddening and reprehensible. For those that are inquiring, I will no longer be promoting my work with that studio, nor accepting future offers to work with them."

Lucas has been a staunch supporter of Israel for years. One of his movies, "Men of Israel," featured an all-Jewish cast ... the first of its kind in the industry.

A Palestinian restaurant in NYC recently opened to some bad reviews – and it's all because of its antisemitic menu.

"Ayat" eatery – which had three locations in the Big Apple -- opened a fourth last week in the largely Jewish Bay Ridge section of Brooklyn, upsetting many of the patrons with the offensive language on the menu.

The phrases "from the river to the sea" and "down with the occupation" were scrawled across the menus handed out to fuming customers, who later went on Facebook to blast Ayat's owners for being "openly genocidal."

Of course, everyone knows the slogan "from the river to the sea" has been used as a rallying cry to wipe out Israel. The anti-Defamation League has even labeled the phrase antisemitic.

But, Ayat's owners – Abdul Elenani and his wife, Masoud – chalked it off to a misunderstanding, saying they have "no ill will" toward Jewish people.

In a Facebook post, Abdul wrote that "our interpretation on it is just simply freedom and rights to the Palestinian people between the Jordan River and Mediterranean Sea." He added, "We're just against the Zionist mentality of, like, eliminate or flatten now."

As you know, tensions have been riding high in the Middle East since October 7th when Hamas militants attacked Israel, slaughtering about 1,400 Jews, including babies.

A day later, Israel declared war against Hamas – a terrorist group governing the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Kodak Black está apoyando a Israel como solo él puede, con algunas joyas nuevas y un video incoherente.

TMZ obtuvo un video que hizo Kodak antes de su más reciente viaje tras las rejas. En el video le pide a Hamás que libere a los rehenes israelíes en Gaza y prometiéndole apoyo a sus "homies hebreos" mientras la guerra hace estragos en el Oriente Medio.

Nuestras fuentes dicen que Kodak grabó el video en su casa de Florida, sentándose delante de la cámara en algún momento entre su arresto por drogas en diciembre y su posterior regreso a la cárcel federal.

Kodak está mostrando nuevo bling en el video, un anillo personalizado con el símbolo del pueblo judío, la estrella de David.

Nos informan que la nueva joya del rapero cuenta con 7.8 quilates de diamantes VVS1 y 14 quilates de oro blanco, además es de diseñador y viene con una etiqueta de precio de $20.000.

Kodak es básicamente el anti-Kanye West en esta situación, dándole su apoyo a Israel y el pueblo judío en la guerra contra los terroristas de Hamás.

Kodak Black is supporting Israel as only he can ... with some new jewelry and a rambling video message.

TMZ obtained a video Kodak filmed before his most recent trip behind bars, and he's calling for Hamas to release Israeli hostages in Gaza and pledging his support for his "Hebrew homies" as war rages in the Middle East.

Our sources say Kodak shot the video at his home in Florida, sitting down in front of the camera sometime between his December drug bust and subsequent return to federal lockup.

Kodak's showing off some new bling in the video ... a custom ring with the symbol of the Jewish people ... the Star of David.

We're told KB's new bling features 7.8 carats of VVS1 clarity diamonds and 14-karat white gold ... it was purchased from NYC Luxury and it comes with a $20,000 price tag.

Kodak's basically the anti-Kanye West here ... supporting Israel and the Jewish people in the war against Hamas terrorists.