Alicia Keys has apologized for posting about paragliding amid the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
The “Empire State of Mind” hitmaker has been forced to deleted a poorly timed Instagram post after she revealed plans for her new hobby after Hamas used paragliders to attack a festival in Israel on Oct. 7.
Alongside a photo of herself in a green leather racing jacket and two side eye emojis, Keys wrote: “Question: What would u do if you weren’t afraid of anything??? Tell me your truth … I’ve had my eyes on paragliding.”
The “Girl On Fire” singer’s outfit also prompted controversy as some people claimed the green, black and white were reminiscent of the black, white, green and red on the Palestinian flag. However, Keys — who has since deleted the post — has strongly denied any connection between her paragliding message and current events.
“The post I shared earlier was COMPLETELY unrelated in any way to the recent devastating loss of innocent lives. My heart has been breaking… I pray for and stand for peace,” she wrote on her Instagram Story.
She has been defended by music manager Guy Oseary — who was born in Israel — as he revealed the singer was “horrified” when she discovered the implication of her post.
“There’s talk of an antisemitic post that my dear friend Alicia Keys had up on her Instagram. I can confirm to anyone in my community that needs to hear it: it’s NOT true. There was a specific word in her post that our community at this very painful time find very triggering, but it was absolutely not connected in any way. I spoke to Alicia and she was horrified to learn what the word implied and immediately took it down. Alicia has always been a fighter for all human rights. I’ve had a front row seat for over a decade of seeing her positive influence in the world. Her humanitarian work reflects her empathy and her heart,” he wrote on Instagram.
