Nadia Sawalha has been a vocal critic of the Israeli government’s actions in Palestine over the last 12 months and impressed her Jordanian-born father thanks to her new-found role as an activist

Nadia Sawalha shares plea with followers

Standing in solidarity with the people of Palestine despite the threat of being blacklisted for doing so has made Nadia Sawalha a better person, the actress has admitted.

Nadia insists she isn’t brave for being a visible pro-Palestine activist as it’s just that she wouldn’t “be able to live with herself without saying something” on behalf of her father, Jordanian-born British actor Nadim Sawalha – admitting witnessing her dad’s reaction to the atrocities has broken her heart.

The Loose Women panellist has been one of the few vocal celebrities speaking out publicly about horrifying scenes occurring in the Middle East over the last year, routinely taking to her YouTube channel and Instagram page to share her personal views with her followers on what is happening in Gaza.

But despite the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordering Israel to take preventive measures to protect Palestinians in Gaza and provide humanitarian aid back in January, and multiple organisations like the United Nations calling for an immediate ceasefire, revealing yourself to be pro-Palestine as a famous person doesn’t come without risk.

Oscar-winning actress Susan Sarandon was dropped as a client by United Talent Agency last year after speaking out against the Israeli government. In May, Hacks actress Poppy Liu revealed that she has lost work thanks to showing Palestine solidarity. While Melissa Barrera was fired from her role in the seventh Scream movie after describing the situation in Gaza as “genocide and ethnic cleansing” on social media.

Spyglass Media Group, the production house behind the hit horror franchise, confirmed Barrera’s dismissal and issued a statement to Variety asserting the company’s “zero tolerance for antisemitism or the incitement of hate in any form, including false references to genocide, ethnic cleansing, Holocaust distortion, or anything that flagrantly crosses the line into hate speech.”

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is currently reviewing a request from South Africa to order Israel to halt military operations in Rafah as part of a wider case accusing Israel of genocide against Palestinians—an allegation Israel has dismissed as “baseless.” The ICJ has not yet made any determination on whether Israel’s actions meet the legal criteria for genocide.

Reflecting on the personal impact of her activism, former EastEnders actress Nadia spoke to the Mirror about whether she worries she’ll miss out on mainstream jobs due to her vocal support for Palestine. “Yes, absolutely…I’m so glad you’ve asked me this question. I would love more people to ask me about Palestine.”

The Loose Women star says advocating for a free Palestine has made her a better person(Image: TikTok)

“Everything that I feel and think I say on Instagram, I say on my YouTube channel… we have consistently spoken day in, day out over the entire last year spoken about this, and I find it so agonisingly painful,” Nadia reveals. “I never go out of the house without people coming up to me and whispering ‘, Oh, thank you so much for what you’re doing. I can’t say anything because of my work. I can’t do anything because of this. I can’t say anything because of that.’ People will tell me, ‘Oh, you’re so brave,’ But it’s not – I’m not brave. It’s just that I cannot live with myself without saying something.”

The situation in Palestine has escalated significantly over the past year. On October 7th, Hamas, listed as a terrorist organisation by the UK and in control of Gaza since 2007, launched an attack on Israel, resulting in over 1,200 deaths and around 250 hostages being taken, including women and young children.

After the October attack, Israel responded with airstrikes in Gaza. Past conflicts between Israel and Hamas have led to significant casualties in Gaza and days of rocket fire on Israeli towns. According to the Health Ministry in the Hamas-run territory, the current death toll in Gaza since the onset of this latest escalation exceeds 40,000, with no distinction made between civilians and militants.

The Israeli government, facing public pressure to dismantle Hamas’ control in Gaza, has mobilised 360,000 reservists and threatened a strong response. In February, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declined Hamas’ offer for a ceasefire and the return of hostages held in the Gaza strip. As of September, 101 Israeli hostages remain in captivity.

Mainstream coverage of Israel’s attacks has been heavily criticised by some pro-Palestine figures, with many using their social media platforms to share footage and images of the horrors happening in the Middle East. “It is a fine line because you want to help inform people, but you don’t want to become a bore about it because you want to keep people engaged,” Nadia told us while discussing how she shares content with her fans regarding the war. “People on my YouTube channel and Instagram followers say, ‘Oh, thank you so much. I just wasn’t aware, and I wasn’t aware of this, and I wasn’t aware of that. So I find it. It really nourishes me when people say that…”

Fire breaks out on the tents of displaced Palestinians after Israeli attacks on a hospital in Gaza on October 14(Image: Anadolu via Getty Images)

Fighting back the tears, Nadia explained: “When I feel so powerless, and I have .times where I am so low at the horror of it, and I feel so powerless, I think right, what can we do? Of course, you can’t go and save the world. But what can you do in your life? So if I do a post, somebody might say to me, ‘Oh, God, What? I didn’t know this, and I looked at it, and I read it, and I didn’t know the history that helps me feel powerless over it.”

Nadia isn’t the only celebrity using her fame to call for a ceasefire, with the likes of Rachel Zegler, Andrew Garfield, Aimee Lou Wood, Joe Alwyn, Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck and Dua Lipa just some of the notable signatures on the latest open letter from Artists For Ceasefire to President Joe Biden urging him to “call for an immediate de-escalation and ceasefire in Gaza and Israel before another life is lost.”

“I feel now more people are wanting to know more, and that is really good because when our grandchildren ask us where we were and what we did, we have to have an answer,” Nadia stated when chatting about a new wave of stars speaking out in support of Palestine.

Nadia’s activism hasn’t just given the mum-of-two a sense of self-worth over the last year but impressed her father, Jordanian-born British actor Nadim Sawalha. Jordan once had control of the West Bank, named after its location near the Jordan River. The West Bank, one of two Palestinian territories (the second being the Gaza Strip), first emerged in the wake of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War as a region occupied and subsequently annexed by Jordan. Jordan ruled the territory until the 1967 Six-Day War when Israel occupied it.

Nadia’s father was born in Jordan and lived there before moving to Britain (Image: TikTok)

Nadia’s activism and solidarity with the people of Palestine has impressed her father(Image: TikTok)

“My dad is 91, and he’s Jordanian – he was the West Bank,” Nadia explained last week. “To watch his face through these horror stories just breaks my heart. But the one thing that’s come up is that so much good has come out of it. Personally, it’s changed me for the better.”

“It’s made me an activist and just made me even more sure of what I believe in and what I don’t,” Nadia told us last week, bursting into a giggle as she added: “My dad is just overwhelmed with mine and my sister’s Arabness. Solidarity brings solidarity in yourself and your character as well. So much good has come out of a terrible, terrible dark time.”

Another positive outcome of such a tragedy for Nadia has been the opportunity to learn about other cultures. “What I’ve really enjoyed is starting to learn more about Judaism,” she admitted. Now I follow so many Jewish accounts and listen to so many incredible Jewish opinions on all of this that that has been really enriching, because there are so many Jewish people across the world uniting.”

Jewish Voice for Peace, a left-wing American anti-Zionist organisation, critical of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories, made a statement on October 15 following Israel’s bombing of a makeshift displacement camp in the courtyard of a central Gaza hospital, which the Israeli military reported was being used by Hamas in its operations.

“Right now, Palestinians are being burned alive by Israeli bombs for over a year. U.S.-based defence contractors and big banks have seen profits soar,” a statement from Jewish Voice for Peace read as 500 Jews and allies shut down the New York Stock Exchange to demand the U.S. stop arming Israel and profiting from the conflict.

On the same day, the U.S. warned Israel it would impose an arms embargo if the “dire” situation in Gaza regarding aid does not improve. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin give the Israeli Government 30 days to address the ‘deterioration of the humanitarian situation’ in Gaza.

Pressure is mounting on the U.K. government to impose an arms embargo on Israel, but the Prime Minister ruled out a total ban on selling weapons to Israel last week. During PMQs, Keir Starmer said, “Banning all sales would mean none for defensive purposes. None for defensive purposes on the anniversary of October 7 and days after a huge attack by Iran on Israel would be a wrong position for this Government, and I will not take it.”