Richard Gere, a Hollywood A-lister famous for his roles in An Officer and a Gentleman, Pretty Woman, and Runaway Bride among others landed in Israel late Tuesday.
Despite warm receptions on previous trips to the Jewish state, he may not expect such a greeting on this trip due to political comments he made just before his trip.
In an interview with Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, part of which was released Monday night, Gere slammed Israel, warning it is in danger of becoming an “apartheid state” and demanding it put an end to the “occupation” and allow a new Palestinian state to claim Jerusalem as its capital.
Gere planned his visit in part to promote his latest film, an Israeli-American production entitled Norman: The Rise and Tragic Fall of a New York Fixer. Gere has already scheduled meetings with far-left activists such as the radical anti-Zionist Breaking the Silence organization, which spreads negative misinformation about IDF soldiers all over the world and is not allowed into Israeli schools.
“I recently spoke with someone from the group, who served in the army, a wonderful young woman with a big heart, and she’s been labeled an enemy of the state. That breaks my heart.”
He also already gave a provocative interview with an Yedioth Ahronoth, which will be published in full this Friday.
In the past Gere has involved himself in the Israeli-Arab conflict by meeting with left-wing Israeli activists
and partaking in a tour to Ramallah in 2003 at the height of the Second Intifada. Gere maintains ties with the Peres Center for Peace that he has had for more than two decades.
In his interview with Yedioth Ahronoth Gere said, “On my past visits to Israel, I always listened to all the viewpoints. Now that’s become almost impossible. I know that a lot of people won’t like what I have to say, but these are things that must be said.”
“The occupation must end. The occupation is ruining everyone on both sides. A bi-national state won’t solve anything, it will only turn Israel into an apartheid state. There need to be two states for two peoples, and Jerusalem needs to be the capital of both nations.”
Gere targeted Jews living in Judea and Samaria with his remarks, accusing them of dominating the Israeli government – despite the recent demolitions of the town of Amona and a neighborhood in Ofra.
“Why do you need all of these provocations,” Gere asked rhetorically, referring to Jewish homes in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria. “How is it that the settlers are running the Israeli government? And how is it that the State of Israel, of all countries, is ruling over another people? Many Israelis that I know say that the state has lost its way, and I think that every Israeli knows that.” Gere is clearly unfamiliar with recent polls of Israeli citizens on the matter.
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