Clashes between Palestinians and Israeli police in the contested city of Jerusalem have escalated, with Israeli forces striking scores of targets in Hamas-controlled Gaza with airstrikes in response to hundreds of rockets that were launched by the militant organization.
The confrontation, sparked by tensions old and new, threatens to deepen the region's turmoil and with tensions escalating between both sides, the death toll continues to mount. At least 65 people, including 16 children, have died in Gaza while at least five people have been killed on the Israeli side due to the conflict, as previously reported.
Several celebrities across the globe, including the likes of Bella and Gigi Hadid, Dua Lipa, Mark Ruffalo, Trevor Noah and Game of Thrones star Lena Headey, have expressed their support for Palestinians in the wake of the deadly conflict that has resulted in the loss of innocent lives.
Rihanna's Instagram Post
Rihanna also recently took Instagram to share a statement on the Israel-Palestine violence in a post captioned, "I stand with humanity! this ain't it y'all!"
"My heart is breaking with the violence I'm seeing displayed between Israel and Palestine! I can't bare to see it! Innocent Israeli and Palestinian children are hiding in bomb shelters, over 40 lives lost in Gaza alone, at least 13 of whom were also innocent children!," the post read.
Rihanna further added about the need for resolve to save innocent lives amid this conflict. She wrote, "There needs to be some kind of resolve! We are sadly watching innocent people fall victim to notions perpetuated by government and extremists, and this cycle needs to be broken!"
Outrage on Social Media
Rihanna's post immediately sparked outrage on Twitter with users slamming the singer over her "neutral" stance over the conflict with some claiming it gave off "all lives matter energy."
Meanwhile, others pointed out that the popstar expressed her support for Palestinians back in 2014, when she tweeted #FreePalestine. Rihanna immediately deleted the post and later followed it up with a message calling for peace. "Let's pray for peace and a swift end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict! Is there any hope?" she wrote at the time.
"Rihanna is giving such 'all lives matter energy.' I'm disappointed. It's not a conflict!! It's one sided," wrote one user, while another commented,"Rihanna girl what happened to save palestine back in 2014????
Here are some of the reactions:
