Israeli fashion designer Dodo Bar Or’s clothing lines have today been pulled from luxury shopping platforms after she was accused of posting a video that compared terror group Hamas to ISIS.
Items by the designer were previously categorised and listed for sale on the Net-a-Porter and MyTheresa websites but searches to find them today only return error messages, indicating they have been removed.
The clip she is alleged to have posted, which imitates a scene from blockbuster film Independence Day, shows a caption reading ‘The West Is Next’ and ‘#Hamas=Isis #FreeGazaFromHamas’.
It followed an edited section in which a building daubed with the flags of Western states including Great Britain, France, the United States and the European Union, is destroyed by the alien spaceship, which appears surrounded by a circle of flags including those of Palestine and ISIS.
The apparent removal of Dodo Bar Or’s clothes from the websites sparked claims that she had been cancelled after a version of the video which featured her Instagram handle was circulated on social media.
The clip does not appear on her Instagram page today. Dodo Bar Or is yet to respond to requests for comment.
Supporters reacted furiously on social media, with one writing: ‘@NETAPORTER I am thoroughly disgusted that you removed Dodo Bar Or for saying Hamas is ISIS.
‘She said the same thing President Biden said. I spend over $100k a year with you, but not anymore. I have no words.’
Another said: ‘The successful Israeli designer Dodo Bar-Or’s designs were removed from various fashion sites simply because she is an Israeli who expressed her devastation following the shocking massacre of children and adults by Hamas.
‘As an Israeli who has been shopping at Net-a-Porter, My Theresa and more, I intend to stop purchasing there. It’s a shame that they are frightened by ‘influential women’ and are dragged into Antisemitic acts.
‘What is worse is that they don’t realize that they are next in line. Hamas will come to the West and massacre them as part of their desire to take over.’
Hamas has been compared to ISIS a number of times by world leaders since the conflict in the Middle East erupted earlier this month.
On a visit to Israel, President Joe Biden told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: ‘Hamas have committed atrocities that make ISIS look more rational.’
Meanwhile Netanyahu himself said: ‘We’ve never seen such savagery in the history of the state. They’re even worse than ISIS, and we need to treat them as such.’
Dodo Bar Or has designed for a number of top stars including Katy Perry and Ashlee Simpson and her clothes are often sold for thousands of pounds.
Despite some support, there was also a backlash from Palestinian supporters, who urged more retailers to remove her products from their stores.
One TikTok user, who reacted to the post in a video of her own, in which the designer’s Instagram handle is visible, told viewers: ‘This video that you have seen is worse than the s*** that came out after 9/11.
‘First of all it’s associating the Free Palestine movement with a vicious organisation, ISIS, which actually kills more Muslims than any other religion.
‘Second, it’s conflating Islam with the Free Palestine movement. Palestine has always been a melting pot with a large percentage of Christians, Muslims and Palestinian Jews.
‘During the segment when you heard the Adhan when the explosion started, that is a Muslim call to prayer that over one billion people respond to five times a day peacefully to reconnect with God.
‘She is actively promoting propaganda of the most vile, bilious, racist, Islamophobic kind worse than the propaganda which got people killed after 9/11.’
The designer has also faced criticism over the colourful keffiyeh-inspired kaftans with which she made her name.
The keffiyeh is a symbol of Palestinian nationalism, dating back to the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine, and sales of them have been criticised in the past as ‘cultural appropriation’.
The designer, who first found fame as an actress in Israel before turning to fashion, ‘draws on her Middle Eastern heritage for inspiration’, according to her biography on her website.
Dodo Bar Or, Net-a-Porter and MyTheresa have all been approached for comment.
