Adidas dropped supermodel Bella Hadid from an ad campaign for sneakers tied to the deadly 1972 Munich Olympics in response to criticism over her statements in support of Palestinians and against Israel's devastating war against Hamas.
"We are conscious that connections have been made to tragic historical events — though these are completely unintentional — and we apologize for any upset or distress caused," the German sportswear company said in a statement Thursday.
Adidas also said it was "revising the remainder of the campaign" because it believed sports should be a "unifying force around the world."
The move came after the American Jewish Committee and Israel's government condemned Adidas for using Hadid, 27, to promote the reintroduction of its SL 72 sneakers, which were first released for the 1972 Olympics.
The Games that year were the scene of a massacre in which 11 Israeli athletes and a German police officer were killed by Palestinian militants who stormed the Olympic Village and took members of Israel's team hostage.
"For Adidas to pick a vocal anti-Israel model to recall this dark Olympics is either a massive oversight or intentionally inflammatory. Neither is acceptable," the American Jewish Committee said on X.
The Israeli government also called Hadid "a half-Palestinian model" in a message posted on social media that accused her of "spreading antisemitism and calling for violence against Israelis and Jews."
Hadid, whose Palestinian father is a California luxury real estate developer, hasn't spoken publicly since the controversy erupted.
In 2021, Hadid waved a Palestinian flag while marching with thousands of people who chanted "Free Palestine!" during a demonstration in New York City, Page Six reported at the time.
Following the surprise Oct. 7 Hamas attacks that sparked the latest Mideast war, she wrote on social media that her family had "witnessed 75 years of violence against Palestinian people, most notably, brutal settler invasions which led to the destruction of entire communities, murder in cold blood and the forcible removal of families from their homes."
Nearly 39,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Hamas-Israel War, which was triggered by the Hamas incursion into Israel last October that killed 1,200 Israelis, with hundreds more kidnapped.
Last month, her agent said Hadid and her older sister, supermodel and TV personality Gigi Hadid, had donated $1 million to support relief efforts in Gaza.
