Natalie Portman pulls out of Israeli awards ceremony due to ‘distressing’ recent events

The foundation behind the prestigious Genesis Prize says this year’s winner, Natalie Portman, has pulled out of the June awards ceremony in Israel, quoting a representative for the U.S. actress as saying recent events in Israel were “extremely distressing to her.”

The Genesis Prize Foundation says it was informed Portman “does not feel comfortable participating in any public events in Israel.”

The statement late Thursday did not refer to specific events. Israel has faced criticism for its response to mass protests on the Gaza-Israel border, in which 28 Palestinians were killed and hundreds wounded by Israeli fire since March 30. Israel says it’s defending its border.

In a statement posted to its website, the Genesis Foundation said, “We fear that Ms. Portman’s decision will cause our philanthropic initiative to be politicized, something we have worked hard for the past five years to avoid.”

They added, “The mission of the Genesis Prize is to create a space where we can cast politics aside and come together to appreciate Jewish accomplishments that continue to contribute so much to human civilization; to contemplate Jewish identity and values and what they mean in the 21st century; to strengthen the bond between the State of Israel and the Jewish Diaspora; and to celebrate pride in being Jewish, and – especially in this 70th anniversary year – in the State of Israel. We are disappointed that this year we will not be able to fulfill this mission in full.”

The Genesis Prize recognizes and honours extraordinary individuals who serve as an inspiration to the next generation of Jews through their outstanding professional achievement and commitment to the Jewish people and Jewish values, such as social justice, tolerance and charity.”

Previous recipients former New York mayor and gun-control advocate Michael R. Bloomberg (2014), actor Michael Douglas (2015), Israeli-American violinist Itzhak Perlman (2016), and British sculptor Anish Kapoor, who is Indian-Jewish (2017).

In November 2017, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was selected as the inaugural recipient of the Genesis Lifetime Achievement Award.

Comments

Job alert: Direct Sales Agent At Ashton & Dave Travels And Holidays Limited.

Ashton & Dave Travels and Holidays Limited is a professional travel, holiday and Logistics services organization is led by a group of professionals whose aim is to provide clients with services that exceed their expectations. Ashton & Dave travels and holidays limited is incorporated under the "Companies and Allied Matters Act 1990 (RC 713420 )" and an IATA accredited travel management company working as a professional and reliable entity. We seek applications from qualified candidates for the position below: Job Title : Direct Sales Agent Location : Victoria Island, Lagos Responsibilities • Prospecting, qualifying, developing and closing sales opportunities within and outside the country (borderless marketing). • Forecasting and tracking of sales opportunities. • Achieving sales targets. • Understanding industry trends, product capabilities and customer requirements. • Establish Executive level, long term custome

15 tips to make you an excellent student and stay at the zenith in your academic pursuit

Having an excellent result has been what every student craves for, and bringing the excellent result home is an ecstatic moment and great pride to one's parents. Having an excellent result has also been the priority of every newly admitted student in the higher institutions. But during the course of the study, the initial high expectations start degrading due to the harsh academic environment and some unforeseen factors that are being faced by the students. To those who are bothered about making excellent grades out of school when they finally graduate, these are some tips to make you high flying like an eagle. 1.) Know your best time of study : Knowing your best of study goes a long way to make you an excellent student. It is funny when you read because your mates/friends are reading, look up! This is disastrous to your academic life. It's pertinent you know whether it is early in the morning, afternoon, evening or midnight that you read

Yakubu Dogara congratulates wife, Gimbiya, as she is a year older

Speaker of the house, Federal Republic of Nigeria, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara, has congratulated his wife, Gimbiya, as she is a year older and the speaker has taken his time to shower some accolades on her. Dogara said"Happy birthday to Virtuous woman, the rock of my family and the love of my life. Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself as you continue to flourish like a palm tree bearing fruits in season and out of season." The wife of Bukola Saraki, Toyin Saraki, also congratulated Dogara's wife on her twitter account. She (Toyin) said"Happy Birthday to my dear sister, Mrs. Gimbiya- blessed to know you, even more blessed by your friendship. May all your years be blessed. Happy Eld too! Amen!

Gistyoublog

Search This Blog