Zara regrets 'The Jacket' campaign 'misunderstanding' mocking Palestinians

Zara says it "regrets" a "misunderstanding" regarding an ad campaign that was condemned for incorporating pictures from the Israel-Hamas war and mocking Palestinians.

Following days of reaction on social media and complaints to the UK's advertising authority, it has removed the remaining images.

In one photograph, a model was holding a mannequin covered in white plastic.

Some clients, according to Zara, saw "something far from what was intended when they were created."

Some X, previously Twitter, users have called for a boycott of the trendy shop.

Zara stated that the Atelier line campaign was "conceived in July and photographed in September."

Hamas launched an attack on Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people. Israel conducted attacks on Gaza, killing an estimated 18,200 Palestinians, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

Zara's "The Jacket" campaign included a sequence of photographs of the model against a backdrop of cracked stones, ruined statuary, and shattered plasterboard.

Some on social media compared them to photographs emerging from Gaza.

But Zara said the campaign presented "a series of images of unfinished sculptures in a sculptor's studio and was created with the sole purpose of showcasing craft-made garments in an artistic context".

In a statement issued days after the controversy first emerged, Zara said: "Unfortunately, some customers felt offended by these images, which have now been removed, and saw in them something far from what was intended when they were created.

"Zara regrets that misunderstanding and we reaffirm our deep respect towards everyone."