‘VERY BAD TIMING’

Zara Pulls Ad Campaign After Boycott Calls Over Alleged Resemblance to Gaza Pics

The ads showed mannequins with missing limbs, statues draped in white sheets, and model Kristen McMenamy posing amid rubble.

The retail clothing giant Zara withdrew an advertising campaign showing mannequins with missing limbs, statues draped in white sheets, and model Kristen McMenamy posing amid rubble Monday following a boycott push from some pro-Palestinian protesters. Inditex, the clothing company that owns Zara, did not explicitly refer to the backlash, saying the move was simply to freshen up its marketing. It later noted that the collection in question was shot in September, before the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel. According to Reuters, Zara said at its launch event on Dec. 7 that its campaign took influence from the men’s tailoring industry, featuring artist studios with ladders and workers dressed in overalls. But The Independent reported that “#BoycottZara” was trending on X, formerly Twitter, on Monday and more than 100,000 comments appeared on the company’s Instagram posts. Users said the advertisements looked like photos taken of dead bodies wrapped in white shrouds at mass graves in Gaza. A source with knowledge on Zara’s situation told iNews, “Perhaps this was very bad timing.”