Zara pulls ads with mannequin wrapped in white cloth after Gaza boycott calls
International clothing retailer Zara has pulled an advertising campaign featuring mannequins with missing limbs and statues wrapped in white from the front page of its website and app after calls by some pro-Palestine activists for a boycott of the brand.
The brand's Instagram account saw tens of thousands of comments posted about the photos, many with Palestinian flags, while "#BoycottZara" was trending on messaging platform X.
Here's what we know about why a fashion chain has been embroiled in the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
What about the campaign sparked backlash?
In one of the photos a model is pictured carrying a mannequin wrapped in white cloth.
In another, a bust lies on the floor.
Another features a mannequin with no arms.
Critics said they resembled photos of corpses wrapped in white shrouds in Gaza.
While bodies wrapped in white cloth are associated with many other circumstances — such as situations with many fatalities including conflicts and natural disasters — imagery of dead people wrapped in white cloths has become increasingly common in the recent coverage of the war.
The photos being criticised were published among a series of other images promoting the collection called "Atelier". Here's what one of the other images looked like:
The campaign was launched on December 7.
At the launch of the collection, the company said it was inspired by men's tailoring from past centuries, as reported by international news agency Reuters.
The photos show what appears to be an artist studio with ladders, packing materials, wooden crates and cranes as well as assistants wearing overalls.
These images featured on Zara's online store home page on Monday morning.
Posts deleted
We're unable to share the images because they'd been wiped from the brand's website, app and social media accounts by Tuesday morning.
A link about the collection on the UK website instead led to a page showcasing clothing from last year.
However, some other campaign images were still visible on the site's X and Instagram accounts early Tuesday. Here's an example:
Those screenshots were taken shortly before the posts were removed.
The brand has since posted three new photos of a different fashion collection on Instagram.
By Tuesday morning, the brand's social media accounts were flooded with comments from people calling for a boycott and asking why the company hadn't made a statement about the situation.
"Will you address this or keep pretending you can't see the thousands of comments on here and calls to boycott the brand?" one Instagram user wrote.
"The fact that you are so committed to pretending that nothing is happening right now, and ignoring the very real controversy around your f***ing appalling ads/new campaign is WILD! No public statements, no closing of comments, literally nothing? None of this is a good look. But all of it says a lot," another wrote.
What has the brand said?
As of Tuesday morning, there were no posts from the brand's social media accounts addressing the anger or explaining the removal of the images.
The ABC has contacted Zara and Spanish company Inditex — which owns the fashion brand — for comment.
However, Reuters reported that Inditex said the change was part of its normal procedure of refreshing content.
While it didn't comment on the boycott calls, it said the Atelier collection was conceived in July and the photos were taken in September.
The latest war between Israel and Hamas began after October 7.
Not the first fashion controversy
The reaction highlights heightened sensitivity international brands are navigating as fighting across Gaza intensifies and calls for company boycotts rise.
The CEO of Web Summit resigned in October after comments he made on the Israel-Hamas conflict.
It's not the first time an advertising campaign has landed a fashion label in controversy.
French luxury group Kering last year set up a group level position to oversee brand safety after advertising images from its label Balenciaga featuring children sparked a backlash that dented sales.
Dolce & Gabbana was removed from ecommerce sites in China in 2018 after a campaign showing models struggling to eat typical Italian food with chopsticks — decried as racist by local celebrities and social media.
Zara targeted by boycotting groups before
It's unclear how many of the comments on social media have been made by people who are part of dedicated pro-Palestinian groups and how many are people who are less involved with the conflict.
Throughout the conflict, there have been calls for boycotts of a handful of major brands — some perceived to have taken pro-Israeli stances, and some alleged to have financial ties to Israel or investments there.
Some campaigners have singled out Starbucks for suing its workers' union over a post on the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Others criticised McDonald's after its Israeli franchise said it gave free meals to Israeli military personnel.
Ride-hailing app Grab also faced calls for a boycott in Malaysia after the chief executive's wife said she had fallen "completely in love" with Israel during visits there.
She later said the posts were taken out of context.
The Malaysian arms of Grab and McDonald's said following the boycott calls that they would donate aid for Palestinians.
But Zara had been criticised by some groups before this most recent outbreak of war.
More than a year ago, Reuters reported that some Palestinians and Israelis called for a boycott of the clothing chain after the head of Trimera, which holds the Israel franchise for Zara, hosted a campaign event for a prominent far-right election candidate.
Outrage erupted when Trimera chair Joey Schwebel hosted a roundtable with ultranationalist politician Itamar Ben-Gvir.
Mr Ben-Gvir is now Israel's national security minister.
ABC and Reuters
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