'You can't call it self-defence while you're murdering children': Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz lead the celebrity revolt over Gaza 'genocide'

Group of Spanish actors wrote open letter calling for EU to condemn Israel



Bardem called Israel's four-week bombing campaign in Gaza 'barbarism'

Spanish stars are the latest celebrities to voice opinion on the conflict



Zayn Malik received death threats after posting '#FreePalestine' on Twitter

Rihanna has previously posted the same message, but quickly deleted it

Kim Kardashian and Selena Gomez have also shared their views on Gaza

But Gomez's message of compassion for those being killed was mocked

Pro-Israel comedian Joan Rivers asked if Gomez could even spell Palestinian



Spain's leading film stars Penélope Cruz, Pedro Almodóvar and Javier Bardem are the latest major celebrities to go public with their views on the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

The trio are among a group of actors who have penned an open letter in a Spanish newspaper calling for Europe to condemn Israel's bombing of the Palestinian territory, which has now claimed at least 1,200 lives - many of them civilians.

The Spanish stars follow in the wake of celebrities, including singers Zayn Malik, Rihanna and Selena Gomez, and comedian Joan Rivers, who have spoken out either for or against the bombardment.

Anger: Married couple Penelope Cruz (left) and Javier Bardem (right) are among a group of actors who have penned an open letter calling for the EU to condemn Israel's bombing of Gaza

The Spanish celebrities speaking out against Israel's actions in Gaza call on the EU to 'condemn the bombing by land, sea and air against the Palestinian civilian population'.

'Palestinians' homes are being destroyed, they are being denied water, electricity, free movement to their hospitals, schools and fields while the international community does nothing,' they add.

The letter, which was published by Spanish news service Europa Press today, goes on to lament the 'physical, moral, psychological' impact the bombings are having on the people of Gaza, and also called for an end to an Israeli blockade that restricts what can be taken from Israel into the territory.

It is not the first time Bardem, who is married to Cruz, has spoken out in support of Gaza.



In an article for Spanish newspaper El Diario on Saturday, he called the conflict 'genocide', adding that it amounted to an 'occupation and extermination against a people without means, confined to a minimum of land, without water and where hospitals, ambulances and children are targets'.

Support: One Direction star Zayn Malik (left) posted the words '#FreePalestine' on his Twitter page, leading to death threats from Israeli fans. Pop star Selena Gomez has tweeted support for the Palestinian people

Humanity: Meanwhile pop star Selena Gomez was ridiculed by the comedian Joan Rivers after she announced her compassion for the Palestinian people

Zayn Malik received death threats from Israeli fans angry that he posted this tweet in support of Gaza

Branding himself 'outraged, ashamed and hurt', Bardem added that he did not want tax he pays in Spain to be used to support Israeli 'barbarism', before going on to recognise the distinction between the actions of the Israeli state and the opinions of Jews, who may not support the bombings.

'...being Jewish does not automatically mean you support this massacre, just like being Hebrew does not mean you are a Zionist, just like being Palestinian does not automatically make you a Hamas terrorist. That's just as absurd as saying that being German makes you Nazi,' he said.

Bardem went on to say that he had spoken to a lot of Jewish friends in the U.S. about the conflict, one of whom he claimed had told him: 'You can't call it self-defense while you're murdering children.'

The Spanish celebrities who penned today's open letter are the latest in a long line of famous names to voice their opinion on the four-week-old conflict, many of them coming out in support of Gaza.

Both Rihanna (right) and Kim Kardashian have posted messages about the Gaza conflict on Twitter. Rihanna deleted her '#Free Palestine' tweet after eight minutes however, while Kardashian followed up her message about Israel with a post saying she was also 'praying for everyone in Palestine'



Threat: Rihanna deleted this message within eight minutes of posting it after she received dozens of tweets asking if she supported Hamas terrorists

Indecisive: Kim Kardashian posted a message saying she was 'praying for everyone in Israel' before adding that she was also 'praying for everyone in Palestine and across the world'

Yesterday One Direction star Zayn Malik posted the words '#FreePalestine' on his Twitter page, which led to both thousands of messages of support, and also several death threats from Israeli fans.

'People who don't live in Israel don't have any right to say their opinion out loud,' tweeted Shaked Erez, who added the hashtag #FreeIsrael.

'Your Tweet really broke me& I'm sure all the Israeli directioners 2. U made us very sad,' added Stav Ben Shushan, who urged Malik to delete his tweet.



As of this morning Malik has not done so, and it has since been retweeted 230,000 times.

This is in contrast to pop star Rihanna, who tweeted '#FreePalestine' two weeks ago, only to delete the message eight minutes later after receiving tweets asking if she supported Hamas terrorists.

Debate over the conflict grew so heated on Twitter that an argument broke out between footballers Joey Barton (left) - who has posted dozens of messages in support of Gaza - and Israeli-born Yossi Benayoun (right)

Violence: Yossi Benayoun was struck in the face by pro-Palestinian protesters during Israeli side Maccabi Haifa's pre-season game against Lille in Austria last week

Several athletes have also voiced their support of Gaza, including basketball star Dwight Howard, who tweeted the same message as Malik and Rihanna.



Howard later deleted the tweet and issued a public apology on the same platform, saying it had been 'a mistake' and promising never to comment on 'international politics' ever again.

Another sports star to show support for Palestinians was Malaysian cyclist Azizulhasni Awang who wore gloves emblazoned with the words 'Free Gaza' while taking part in the Commonwealth Games.

Debate over the conflict grew so heated on Twitter that an argument broke out between footballers Joey Barton - who has posted dozens of messages in support of Gaza - and Israeli-born Yossi Benayoun.

In response to Barton posting messages calling for an end to the killing of innocent children in Gaza, Benayoun said: 'Mate things can never changed you have been stupid and you will stay stupid all your life..embarrassing.'

Barton responded to his former QPR teammate: 'Firstly, you cannot call somebody stupid with such bad grammar. Secondly, you cannot and should not kill innocent children.'

The pair later made up, with Barton saying they disagreed but remained friends.

Malaysian cyclist Azizulhasni Awang wore gloves emblazoned with the words 'Free Gaza' while taking part in the Commonwealth Games last week

Basketball star Dwight Howard tweeted the words '#FreePalestine'. He later deleted the tweet and issued a public apology saying it had been 'a mistake' and he would never again comment on 'international politics'

Accusations: Omri Casspi, the first NBA player born in Israel, put his feelings on the conflict into capital letters

Meanwhile pop star Selena Gomez was ridiculed by the comedian Joan Rivers after she announced her compassion for the Palestinian people.

After celebrity gossip website TMZ questioned whether that meant she was a supporter of Hamas, Gomez responded that she was 'not picking sides' but was simply pro-humanity.

Gomez posted a message of Instagram saying: 'It's About Humanity. Pray for Gaza', before going on to tweet that she was 'not picking sides', adding that she was ' praying for peace and humanity for all.'

Backstreet Boy AJ McLean appeared somewhat confused about the situation when TMZ asked him for a comment on why the band had cancelled a string of live dates in Israel.

Asked whether the decision was a political on or if it was purely based on security McLean seemed to confuse the conflict with the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17.

'Women and children are dying and planes are being shot out of the sky,' he said in an apparent reference the incident in which 298 were killed when the Boeing 777 plane was blasted out the sky by a surface-to-air missile over eastern Ukraine.

'It’s a horrible thing going on down there and we’re praying for both sides. You can’t pick a side,' he added.

Israel is not without its defenders -- none fiercer than comedienne Joan Rivers, who came out swinging when TMZ caught up with her at Los Angeles airport.

'Let me tell you, if New Jersey were firing rockets into New York, we would wipe them out,' said Rivers, 81, who went on to question if Gomez, 22, even knew how to spell Palestinian.

Destruction: Israel is not without its defenders - none fiercer than comedienne Joan Rivers, who said: 'Let me tell you, if New Jersey were firing rockets into New York, we would wipe them out'

Actor Jon Voight - the father of Angelina Jolie - also had angry words to say about those who question Israel's actions in the Gaza Strip, suggesting those who did were anti-Semitic.

Attending a pro-Israel rally in Las Vegas, Voight said: 'Every patriotic American Jew and non-Jew alike must show their outrage, that we will not tolerate propaganda and lies about Israel being the aggressors and suppressors of the Palestinians.'

'It seems anti-Semitism is very much alive,' he added.

Actress and Unicef ambassador Mia Farrow said on Twitter: 'We can passionately protest Israel's assault upon Gaza without descending, even remotely, into the hideousness of anti-Semitism.'

Elsewhere, Omri Casspi, the first NBA player born in Israel, put his feelings in capital letters in a tweet.



'600 missiles been fired from GAZA by Hamas in the last 4 days. NUMBERS DONT LIE. STOP LYING,' he said in a July 13 tweet that is still in place.

Pro-Israel: Bar Refaeli (left), the Israeli model and former girlfriend of Leonardo DiCaprio (far left), posted messages in support of Israel online. Meanwhile, actor Jon Voight (right) - the father of Angelina Jolie - accused those who question Israel's actions in the Gaza Strip of being prejudiced



Bar Refaeli, the Israeli model and former girlfriend of Leonardo DiCaprio, posted messages on both Twitter and Facebook in support of Israel.

'These days are so difficult to bare. Brave young men who have protected our country from terror. My heart goes out to their families. They will always be remembered and respected,' she said.

Gal Gadot, the Israeli actress who plays Wonder Woman in the forthcoming Batman v Superman movie, also took to Instagram to voice her support for the bombing of Gaza.



'I am sending my love and prayers to my fellow Israeli citizens. Especially to all the boys and girls who are risking their lives protecting my country against the horrific acts conducted by Hamas, who are hiding like cowards behind women and children,' she said.

Meanwhile, as the fighting in Gaza raged, Israeli news media reported last week that pop svengali Simon Cowell donated $150,000 to an Israeli soldiers' charity at a Los Angeles fund-raiser last year.