Middle East Conflict Stars Show Support for Israel Little to None for Palestine
Hollywood's biggest stars have come out in support of Israel amid their ongoing conflict in the Middle East -- but there are hardly any backing Palestine ... at least not publicly.
The A-list crowd has been pouring out with social media tributes all weekend -- speaking on the violent clash ... and denouncing the terrorist attack on Israel by Hamas. Some of those celebs who've voiced their solidarity with Israel include Gal Gadot, Madonna, Ashley Tisdale, Scooter Braun, Mark Hamill, Amy Schumer, Natalie Portman, Kris Jenner, Jamie Lee Curtis and more.
While a lot of these famous folks are posting simple "We Stand With Israel" messages -- others are offering a bit more of a nuanced take ... saying it's reasonable to both disagree with Israel's treatment of Palestinians AND disavow the unhinged violence on Israeli citizens.
That's a sentiment that's been widely embraced by people of late ... and we've been seeing that reflected in streets all over the U.S. -- with many Americans waving Palestinian flags and screaming "Free Palestine." As far as Hollywood's concerned though ... not very many are taking that firm of a stance on the issue -- save for a select few like Mia Khalifa, etc.
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There's 2 people, specifically, a lot of celebs are waiting to hear from ... and that would be Gigi and Bella Hadid, both of whom have remained silent -- this despite the fact they've been very vocal supporters of Palestine over the years, and sympathetic to their cause.
It's interesting ... the fact they haven't spoken up seems to have ruffled feathers in H'wood, with actress Sara Foster apparently calling them out -- but without naming names.
She writes, "Watching Palestinian influencers on here refuse to denounce hamas, refuse to speak out against the barbaric treatment of children, refuse to hope for peace, all while living in the comfort of the US with zero intention of ever being in Palestine because they could never be openly gay or openly post their bikini pics is sadly not shocking. It's easy to be outspoken from the comfort of your warm democratic bed." Sure sounds Hadid-related.
Interestingly enough, some have speculated the Hadid connection may be why Kylie Jenner posted but then deleted her "Support Israel" Instagram this weekend. She's pals with them.
In any case, it's clearly a divisive issue ... but just about every public figure is sending their thoughts and prayers to the innocent people being thrust into the middle of this nightmare.
The debate is sure to continue.
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Hamas Attack CNN Crew Dodges Rocket Strike ... Report Live from a Ditch
The life-and-death nature of reporting from the frontlines in Israel is playing out on TV ... as CNN's Clarissa Ward narrowly avoids Hamas rockets flying overhead.
Clarissa and her crew are right near a border crossing between Israel and Gaza, and as they were reporting Monday on a recent Hamas attack, they had to dive into a ditch to avoid the incoming artillery.
You can see and hear the shells whistle overhead and explode dangerously close to them.
They kept recording right through the strike, and eventually ended up live on CNN, describing the "massive barrage of rockets" aimed at their position.
Once the shelling stopped, she got out of the ditch and showed the roadway where Hamas had recently driven through ... firing on civilians, and then taking hostages and driving them back across the border into Gaza.
War is hell, and technology's enabling the media to expose all the horrors to the world.
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Travis Kelce Injury Dubbed 'Taylor Swift Curse' ... After She Misses Game
Some football fans are convinced Travis Kelce went down with an injury Sunday all because Taylor Swift wasn't in the crowd.
In case ya missed it, TK lost his footing on Sunday while the Kansas City Chiefs were up against the Minnesota Vikings ... injuring his ankle after catching a short pass from QB Patrick Mahomes.
While Travis later returned -- and even secured a touchdown -- fans couldn't help but point out Taylor's absence as the reason why he got hurt mid-game.
Folks online chimed in on the so-called "Taylor Swift Curse," with some even calling her impact on Travis the new Madden curse -- a reference to the bad luck that would come to the player who ends up on the cover of the Madden video game each year.
BTW, Swifties quickly came to Taylor's defense, saying the singer wasn't to blame for Travis' ankle mishap ... claiming the artificial turf might've been the culprit instead.
That seemed to get sports fans back on board with Taylor's impact -- with some hoping the uproar would result in the removal of artificial turf on the field.
Whether ya believe it or not, Travis' injury did go down when Taylor was MIA ... so ya better invest in a season pass, Tay!
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'QANON SHAMAN' I'm Still Huge Trump Supporter ... Capitol Riot Wasn't His Fault
The so-called "QAnon Shaman" remains steadfast in his support of Donald Trump ... despite doing hard time in federal prison for his part in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
Jacob Chansley, easily the most recognizable Capitol rioter, says he's still on Team Trump ... and he's not blaming the former president for the insurrection, or the prison sentences he and others received.
In his first interview since being released early from prison, Chansley told Channel 5 with Andrew Callaghan the riot wasn't Trump's fault in the slightest ... he says Trump should NOT be "blamed for the actions of free citizens."
The way Chansley sees it ... the rioters made their own individual decisions to storm the Capitol and Trump had no responsibility to bail them out or pardon them before leaving office.
The one thing Trump could've done, Chansley says, was start a legal defense fund for the Capitol rioters.
As we reported ... Chansley, who stormed the Capitol in a Viking-style outfit, copped a plea deal with prosecutors and pled guilty to obstructing an official proceeding before Congress ... after initially being arrested for knowingly entering/remaining in a restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, among other counts.
Chansley was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison ... but he got out early after about 16 months, reportedly for good behavior, and now he's back home in Arizona.
And, get this ... Chansley says his time behind bars didn't change his views, it only reinforced his feeling that the government is corrupt at the highest levels.
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Mia Khalifa Shares Support For Palestine, Hamas ... Stirs Controversy Amid Israel Attacks
Former porn star-turned-influencer Mia Khalifa is catching heat online after voicing support for the people of Palestine on the heels of the deadly Hamas attacks that sparked the intensifying war with Israel.
Mia shared her controversial thoughts online over the weekend, as Israel declared a state of war after the Hamas attack ... saying a slew of things not in favor of the people of Israel.
She tweeted, "Can someone please tell the freedom fighters in Palestine to flip their phones and film horizontal," and, "I just wanna make sure there’s 4k footage of my people breaking down the walls of the open air prison they’ve been forced out of their homes and into so we have good options for the history books."
Mia, who is Lebanese, faced backlash for her comments against Israel, but she doubled down ... writing, "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."
She also claimed those who look at the incident and aren't siding with Palestinians are "on the wrong side of apartheid and history will show that in time." Still, folks online are ripping into her stance.
As you know, the Hamas attack on Israel went down Saturday, with the death toll reportedly reaching 700 victims as of Monday amid the massive destruction.
Israel fired back after the initial attack, bombing areas in Gaza -- including a terrorist attack at a crowded music festival near the Gaza Strip, with some being taken hostage by gunmen.
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Drake Still Ticked About Budden's Shots ... Beef Good For Joe's Ratings
Drake has a huge sales week on the horizon, but isn't ready to let bygones be bygones over Joe Budden's scathing critique of his new album, "For All the Dogs," and his boyish lifestyle!!!
Drake threw another shot Monday at JB, clowning him for having a bulletproof fedora case and his podcast career ... "I thank god for this life and not having to come to rushed conclusions on Best Buy podcast mics."
HitsDD is projecting Drake to have his biggest opening week since 2021 -- evidence fans weren't digging that dance album that much -- yet, he's still distracted by Budden enough to spend the weekend duking it out with him.
The Canadian rapper went out of his way to discredit Budden's podcast cohost/engineer Parks Vallely, essentially labeling him "cool as Mark Zuckerberg," to which Parks might have trumped Drake with his response -- revealing he actually worked on Drake's 2016 "Scorpion" album.
JB was basking in yet another level-up for his podcast in the wake of his Drake beef ... posting how his anti-"Dogs" episode was competing in the global news market against Israel vs. Hamas and Donald Trump. Hyperbole's also good ratings.
Whether fans hated it or loved it, the new album could be Drake's last offering for a while ... he says stomach issues have been holding him back for some time now.
The Budden beef could be real or fabricated marketing ... either way, the numbers favor both of their businesses!!!
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Mauricio Umansky Not Dating Co-Worker Leslie Bega ... But His Dad Is!!!
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There's an Umansky who's now dating a woman who works for Mauricio's real estate empire, but he's not the one going out with her.
Check out this pic, of Mauricio and Leslie Bega, who, in addition to working for The Agency, is an actress. You see she has her arm around him. Mauricio's parents, who are divorced, are also chowing down at Il Pastaio in Bev Hills.
The pic was snapped last Tuesday, after the live performance of "Dancing With the Stars." Mauricio is struggling, but still in the competition.
We have good recon here, folks, and turns out Leslie went to the show with her date -- Mauricio's dad, Eduardo Umansky, who also works for The Agency. Mauricio's mom, Dr. Estella Sneider, was also at the show.
We're told Leslie, Eduardo and Estella went to Il Pastaio together and Mauricio joined them mid-meal.
TMZ spoke to Mauricio a few weeks ago and he made it clear ... he and Kyle are separated and he says she's not dating anyone.
As you know, Kyle's been spending a ton of time with country star Morgan Wade ... they've been in the Santa Barbara area the last few days. Kyle's producing a documentary on Morgan's life.
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Ex-Israeli Soccer Player Lior Asulin Killed By Hamas While Celebrating Birthday
Former Israeli pro soccer player Lior Asulin was killed during the brutal Hamas attack over the weekend while celebrating his 43rd birthday.
Auslin, a striker, was partying at a "nature party" music festival at a resort near Kibbutz Re’im when gunmen opened fire, killing the footballer and many others, according to reports.
This is what Hamas did to a peaceful nature festival. Haunting. pic.twitter.com/At2wTowmzf
— The Mossad: Satirical, Yet Awesome (@TheMossadIL) October 9, 2023 @TheMossadIL
One survivor told Israel's Channel 12 she saw about 50 terrorists in military gear arrive in vans and started shooting at anyone in sight.
"They fired bursts, and we reached a point where everyone stopped their vehicles and started running," the survivor said.
"I went into a tree, a bush like this, and they just started spraying people. I saw masses of wounded people thrown around and I'm in a tree and trying to understand what's going on."
The Hapoel Tel Aviv soccer team -- who signed Auslin to a four-year contract in 2007 -- released a statement on X that they're deeply saddened by his death.
His former Bnei Sakhnin coach Eyal Lachman also released a statement, saying Asulin was "a guy with a heart of gold, that was his most outstanding characteristic."
עצב גדול. לאחר שעות רבות בהן הוגדר כנעדר, כעת נודע כי שחקן העבר של המועדון, ליאור אסולין, נרצח ע״י מחבלים במסיבה ברעים.
— Hapoel Tel Aviv FC (@HapoelTelAvivFC) October 8, 2023 @HapoelTelAvivFC
מועדון הכדורגל הפועל תל אביב מרכין ראשו ומבקש לשלוח חיזוקים לבני משפחתו של ליאור בשעתם הקשה.
מחזקים את כוחות הביטחון.
שימרו על עצמכם ועל בני משפחותיכם 🙏🏻
"They always said that his most outstanding characteristic was to give back, I saw that the most outstanding characteristic was to give his friends his soul."
Auslin played for several teams during his pro soccer career ... and was even one of the top strikers in the Israeli domestic league in 2004.
He scored 88 goals and won the 2004 Israeli Cup with Bnei Sakhnin.
Asulin's 43rd birthday was Saturday.
R.I.P.
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Hamas Sneak Attack Concertgoers Hid In Bushes Recorded Messages To Loved Ones
Horrified concertgoers dove into an underbrush to try and save their lives at the Israeli festival where Hamas terrorists slaughtered 260 innocent people.
Two attendees -- a man and a woman -- recorded the harrowing images with their cell phones and posted the footage on social media.
The clips show the two hiding in bushes and whispering messages to family and friends in case they don't make it out alive.
In the background, you hear artillery fire and bombs exploding during Saturday's bloodbath at the Supernova Festival.
Survivors stayed hunkered down for up to 5 hours until Israeli soldiers came in to bring them to safety.
The Palestinian militant group crashed through barriers separating Israel from the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip to carry out the sneak attack around dawn.
Gunmen rolled up in trucks to the venue where fans were listening to music all night and opened fire into the crowd, killing hundreds of people.
At the same time, Hamas launched surprise assaults in other parts of Israel, leaving more than 700 dead. Videos posted online show kidnappings and rockets blowing up buildings.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu:
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) October 7, 2023 @IsraeliPM
"Citizens of Israel,
We are at war, not in an operation or in rounds, but at war. This morning, Hamas launched a murderous surprise attack against the State of Israel and its citizens. We have been in this since the early morning hours. pic.twitter.com/C7YQUviItR
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared war on Hamas, vowing to unleash "mighty vengeance" on the terror organization.
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Britney Spears Posts/Deletes Dance Vid Featuring Bandaged Finger
Britney Spears once again appears to have injured herself in the wake of her troubling knife dance videos -- this time, it's one of her extremities that looks to have been cut.
The pop star posted and deleted this video over the weekend ... which depicts her twirling around in her home like usual -- only this time, she's got her right index finger bandaged up. She's certainly not hiding the injury ... prominently flashing it in her routine.
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Like we said, this clip got thrown up on her official IG account ... and it was quickly removed, but not before eagle-eyed fans spotted it and screen-recorded too. In its place is a separate dance video that shows BS dancing with no bandage in sight -- and seemingly fine.
Of course, the fact she seems to have outed herself here -- having experienced another apparent cut -- is deeply concerning after her recent knife prop fascination ... which looks real, despite what she's insisted (namely, that the blades are fake).
Remember ... just a couple of weeks ago, she posted other dance videos that appeared to feature even more injuries, including some on her leg, her arm and her hip. Now, a diced finger?
There's been no explanation from Britney on this newest dance vid ... but her loyal fan base continues to express apprehension over her state of being. Some say she doesn't look well.
BTW ... it sounds like Britney might be home from her French Polynesian vacation, although it's hard to tell for sure. Some of these clips she posts could very well be old recordings.
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Teresa Giudice Offered Cop Family Biz Cards ... During April Traffic Stop
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Teresa Giudice seemed to have tried the old "Don't you know who I am?" trick during a traffic stop ... and while it's unclear if it worked, she lucked out with a friendly cop.
The 'RHONJ' star got pulled over back in April out in Riverdale, NJ ... this after a police officer apparently saw her swerving in and out of lanes during a night drive. The body cam footage -- which seems to have just been released -- shows his interaction with her.
Check it out ... the cop asks for Teresa's driver's license, and she forks it over -- but also tries sneaking some extra identifying information in the form of "family business cards."
The officer laughs it off, saying those won't be necessary ... and then heads back to his car to dive into her background. He's perusing her record for a bit, and then eventually heads back to talk to Teresa -- at which point he lets her off the hook with a simple warning.
Teresa sounds grateful ... telling the officer that she tends to drive a little crooked, and she even makes a random mention of her father dying. The whole chat is super chummy.
Again, we're not sure if the cop here realized who he was dealing with -- a celeb, especially around those parts in NJ -- but in any case ... he cut TG a break. She should count herself lucky ... especially since she famously ran into serious legal trouble once upon a time.
Teresa's attorney, James Leonard, tells TMZ ... "There is no family business card. That is ridiculous. No such card exists or has ever existed. She was referring to a New Jersey State PBA card that was given to her by an acquaintance who is a law enforcement officer and issued her the card."
Leonard goes on ... "the bigger issue here is why is a video of a woman being pulled over, who did absolutely nothing wrong, being released to the public more than five months after the actual motor vehicle stop happened."
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Ariana Grande's Ex Dalton Gomez Smooching Maika Monroe ... After Finalizing Divorce
Ariana Grande's ex-husband, Dalton Gomez, is certainly enjoying the single life ... he was locking lips with actress Maika Monroe right on the heels of officially ending his marriage.
According to DeuxMoi, Dalton and the "It Follows" star were packin' on the PDA this past weekend -- the person who snapped the photo claims they were friendly with others at Jumbo's Clown Room ... a "bikini bar" in Los Angeles.
Maika and Dalton were apparently making out quite a bit, and barely trying to hide it -- the witness says the apparent couple would look around to see if anyone was watching before goin' back at it.
Dalton's clearly moved on from Ariana -- TMZ broke the story, the former husband and wife finalized their divorce on Friday, just weeks after they simultaneously filed for divorce.
As we reported, Ariana handed Dalton $1,250,000 as part of the settlement instead of spousal support. He's also getting half of the proceeds from the sale of their L.A. pad, and Ariana will have to cough up another $25k for his attorney's fees.
We were told there's a "strong mutual love and respect" between them ... and as you know, Ariana's already moved on from Dalton to her "Wicked" costar, Ethan Slater.
No, we haven't seen them suckin' faces at a strip club, but they did venture to Disney World last month. Not exactly the same vibe.
Did Ariana Grande and Dalton Gomez move on too soon after their separation? Vote below.
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Toni Braxton Poses In The Nude For 56th Birthday
Singer Toni Braxton is looking STUNNING at 56, and she's gotta know it ... which is why she shared a racy snap of herself to celebrate her birthday.
The R&B star posted the nearly-nude shot on Saturday, as she turned 56 -- captioning the hot shot, "In my birthday suit..."
Folks in the comments sounded off with their "Happy Birthday" wishes ... and took the time to point out how great she looks. As one person put it, "Best BDAY photo EVER!!"
Toni's been through the wringer lately -- as we reported, she underwent a procedure last year after doctors found an 80% blockage in her main coronary artery ... which could've resulted in a fatal heart attack.
She also suffers from lupus and lost her sister, Traci, to cancer last year ... something she actually attributed to a slip in checkups with the doctor.
We got Toni in NYC earlier this year, filling us in on how grateful she was months after going under the knife -- and telling us why Traci's passing made her just think she was sad, not sick.
Happy birthday, Toni -- looking GREAT!
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Tom Sandoval Dancing With Mystery Woman ... Nashville Bar Pickup?!?
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Here's Tom Sandoval putting the moves on a woman he took an interest in at a Tennessee bar ... dancing with her before leaving together.
TMZ obtained video of the "Vanderpump Rules" star hitting the dance floor with a mystery brunette ... and it looks like there were sparks.
Folks who were there tell us Tom was at Dierks Bentley's Whiskey Row in Nashville, where Tom first approached the woman as she was dancing with her friends.
We're told the woman seemed hesitant at first, but then she started dancing with Tom ... and they started warming up to one another and things got wilder and wilder as they danced for about 30 minutes.
As you see in the video, it's a little awkward at first as they try and feel each other out ... with Tom trying to get her to twirl.
Sounds like they may have hit it off though ... because we're told Tom and the woman ended up leaving together. We don't know where they went.
The last time we saw Tom out was in early September when he was leaving a bar in West Hollywood with singer-songwriter Tii ... holding hands and interlocking fingers as they went back to his place.
No word about how things worked out with Tom and Tii ... but he's not known as a one-woman man.
Do you think Tom Sandoval will announce a new relationship in the next 6 months? Vote below.
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Rihanna Dancin' Up on A$AP for 35th Bday ... After Drake's 'FATD' Diss
Drake may say he's over Rihanna -- but she's the one who truly seems to have moved on ... just peep how happy she looks celebrating A$AP Rocky's big birthday weekend!
The songstress and her baby daddy were raging Friday night after hitting the town on the East Coast to ring A$AP's 35th born day ... which was actually on Oct. 3. Nothing like a prolonged party though -- and that's exactly what RiRi and AR had on their hands here.
It appears to have been an adult-only rager ... sans any sign of their 2 little ones. As far as where exactly they were -- apparently, they started in the Big Apple, and made their way to a go-kart joint in Jersey City after -- though, unclear if that's where this shindig went down.
In any case ... they were living it up big time, dancing up on each other and boogeying on down with their close friends nearby. Rihanna, specifically, made sure to bust out the moves.
We must say, post-delivery of her 2nd son in August -- she's looking pretty damn good ... and about as spry as ever. And dare we say ... she's still hot as hell, despite what Drizzy might be claiming now.
Of course, we're referring to the shots he took in his new song 'Fear Of Heights' -- where he lamented the fact people felt he hadn't moved past RiRi ... while also claiming he'd been with way hotter women than her -- and also, he suggested A$AP was "stuck" with Rihanna.
In the wake of his latest dig at his ex ... Drake's been getting dragged across the coals by Rihanna fans -- who were quick to point out how obsessed home boy was back in the day. Remember, he infamously declared his love for her on live TV during the 2016 VMAs.
They actually dated for a bit after that ... but it didn't last, and the relationship fizzled.
A couple years later, Rihanna kinda shaded Drake in a Vogue cover story ... saying this about the status of their relationship, "We don’t have a friendship now, but we’re not enemies either. It is what it is." The outlet also noted her "eyes glaze[d] over with cool indifference."
She hasn't talked much about him since, but Drizzy's still going on about her ... a mom of 2, who's in a committed relationship ... and who's billionaire fashion mogul.
Time to turn the page, eh?
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Halloween Costumes Barbie, Little Mermaid Hot Sellers
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If there's a competition for the most popular Halloween costumes, Barbie and Ariel, the "Little Mermaid" are queens of the hill this year -- and everything related to those characters is flying off shelves.
A rep for HalloweenCostumes.com tells TMZ ... those 2 themes have been knocking it out of the park for 2023, as expected with the popularity of their movies -- especially "Barbie" -- this year.
For Barbie, the company's officially licensed costumes have been selling 9x as much as they did last year ... and the site's "Barbie-Inspired" looks have also boosted 40%.
As for Ariel, her styles are up nearly 70% in 2023, too -- and the company is just hoping its inventory will be enough to get 'em through the spooky season!
Believe it or not, the movies aren't the only hot topics in the world of Halloween costumes ... we're told there's been a major spike in interest for Beyoncé and Taylor Swift looks -- obviously because of their extremely popular concert tours.
HalloweenCostumes.com has responded to the concert craze by making costume guides for each option -- a combination of some of the site's items that, when put together, make for a pretty great look-alike.
So if you wanna spend this Halloween with a life on tour, under the sea, or in plastic ... ya better act fast!