"Have Some Compassion": Mark Ruffalo's Response To Israeli PM Calling Palestinians "Collateral Damage"

Amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, Hollywood actor Mark Ruffalo slammed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for saying Palestinians are “collateral damage”. Speaking at NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday, Mr Netanyahu appeared to justify civilian deaths in Gaza by saying that the Israeli army is only targetting terrorists and the civilians losing their lives is just “collateral damage”. “We're deliberately doing everything in our power to target the terrorists. And the civilians, as happens in every legitimate war, are sometimes what are called 'collateral damage.' That's a longer way of saying unintended casualties,” he said, as per the outlet

Now, in response to Mr Netanyahu's statement, Mark Ruffalo took to social media on Monday and slammed the Israeli Prime Minister. Mr Ruffalo tweeted that the people who were mercilessly killed by Israeli rockets were not “collateral damage”. He added that people who lost their lives were human beings, "not buildings or roads or things", who happened to have been born there and live there, and were now stuck there. 

No. Sorry. They are not “collateral damage” they are human beings who happen to have been born there and live there and most of those human beings are stuck there. Have some compassion, they are Palestinians not buildings or roads or things, they are human beings and so are the…

— Mark Ruffalo (@MarkRuffalo) November 13, 2023

“No. Sorry. They are not “collateral damage” they are human beings who happen to have been born there and live there and most of those human beings are stuck there,” Mr Ruffalo tweeted. The ‘Avengers' star also asked Mr Netanyahu to “have some compassion”. “They are Palestinians not buildings or roads or things, they are human beings and so are the hostages whose lives you may also be destroying. They aren't “collateral damage” either,” the actor said. 

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Notably, this is not the first time that Mr Ruffalo has spoken about the ongoing Israel-Palestine war. He was among the long list of high-profile celebrities who signed a letter to US President Joe Biden in October, calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and Israel. “We ask that, as President of the United States, you call for an immediate de-escalation and ceasefire in Gaza and Israel before another life is lost," the letter read. It also mentioned the tragedies people living in Gaza have to go through. 

Besides Mr Ruffalo, Selena Gomes, Gigi Hadid, Bella Hadid, Anoushka Shankar, Ben Affleck, Bradley Cooper, Channing Tatum, Drake, Dua Lipa, Joaquin Phoenix, Joe Alwyn, Kristen Stewart, Michael Moore and Sarah Jones, also signed the letter. 

On Monday, Gaza's Hamas government said the death count from the ongoing war reached 11,240, after more than five weeks of fighting between Israel and Hamas operatives. Among the dead were 4,630 children and 3,130 women, the government said, with another 29,000 people wounded.