Social media has been abuzz with claims that renowned international beauty brand Dior has ended its partnership with supermodel Bella Hadid due to her stance on the Israel-Hamas conflict.
CLAIM: Dior ended its partnership with supermodel Bella Hadid after she posted messages in support of Palestinians as the Israel-Hamas started on October 7, and has been replaced in an ad campaign with Israeli model May Tager.
FACT CHECK: These claims are false. Hadid’s contract with the global fashion house ended in March 2022. And while Tager is one of several models appearing in Dior’s 2023 holiday campaign, she also appeared in the 2022 version of the promotion.
DETAILS: Hadid, whose father is Palestinian, has been very vocal about her criticism of Israel and supporting Palestinians. She was named a brand ambassador for Dior’s makeup in 2016.
After the war between Israel and Hamas broke out in October, Bella Hadid posted a statement on her Instagram account on October 23, mourning the loss of innocent lives while calling on her followers to press their leaders to protect civilians in Gaza.
When Dior released its new holiday campaign days after her statement – with some ads also featuring May Tager - social media users were quick to notice Hadid’s absence, suggesting that she had been unceremoniously dropped from the promotion.
However, upon some digging, it was revealed that Bella Hadid’s contract with Dior ended in March 2022 and was not extended. Also, the claim that she has been replaced by Tager is also false, as the Israeli model also appeared in Dior’s 2022 holiday campaign.
She was one of several models in both campaigns, and they both centred around actor Anya Taylor-Joy, who has been a global brand ambassador for the brand since 2021.
A similar claim about Dior axing Hadid over her pro-Palestine comments circulated on social media in March 2021. However, months later, she promoted the brand’s makeup at the Cannes Film Festival.