Natalie Portman pulls out of Jerusalem ceremony over recent events in Israel

(Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)

JERUSALEM Natalie Portman has pulled out of a ceremony in Jerusalem honoring her as the recipient of a $2 million prize, dubbed by some as the “Jewish Nobel,” the organization said Thursday.

The Genesis Prize Foundation, which annually honors individuals for “Jewish achievement and contributions to humanity,” announced in November that Canada Goose Parka Portman, known for her roles in films such “Black buy canada goose jacket Swan” and the “Star Wars” prequels, was cheap canada goose uk selected asits 2018 laureate.

Portman moved to the United States as a child but was born in Israel. She still has strong ties to the country; her 2015 film, canada goose uk shop “A Tale of Love and Darkness,” is set Canada Goose sale in Israel.

But a statement from the organizationsaid the actress had pulled out of the June ceremony, where uk canada goose outlet she would have officially received her prize from Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after becoming distressed by recent events in the country.

“The canada goose black friday sale Genesis Prize Foundation was notified by a representative of Ms. Portman that ‘recent events in Israel have been extremely distressing to her and she does not feel comfortable participating in uk canada goose any public events in Israel,’ and that ‘she cannot in good conscience move forward with the ceremony,’” said the statement.

It was not immediately clear buy canada goose jacket cheap what events Portman was referring to, but over the past three weeks, Israel has come under https://www.canadagooseoutlete.com/ increasing pressure from canada goose coats on sale international organizations canada goose and human rights groups for using excessive force in Canada Goose Online dealing with Palestinian civil unrest in the Gaza Strip.

More than 30 Palestinians have been killed by Israel’s military in the weekly canada goose coats demonstrations held along the border fence separating the blockaded coastal enclave from Israel. The Israeli military has canada goose clearance said theciviliansare being used as a cover by the militant Islamist group Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, to infiltrate Israel and carry out terrorist attacks in its border communities. Hamas is designated a terrorist organization by Israel, the United Statesand the European Union.

[Thousands of Palestinians demonstrate at Gaza border for a third week, hundreds injured]

The organizers of the weekly canadian goose jacket protests, which have been named canada goose store “March of Return,” are slated to continue through May 15, when Palestinians commemorate Canada Goose sale “the Nakba,” Arabic for “catastrophe” the term Palestinians use for the flight and expulsion of an estimated 700,000 Palestinians seven decades ago upon Israel’s creation.

This is not the first time Portman hasspoken out with regard to Israel. In 2015, following the reelection of Netanyahu, she said in an interview with the Hollywood Reporter that she was “very much against Netanyahu.”

“I am very, very upset and disappointed Canada Goose Jackets that he was re elected,” she said in the article. “I find his racist comments horrific. However, I don’t what I want to make sure is, I don’t want to use my platform [the wrong way]. I feel like there’s some people who become prominent, and then it’s out in the foreign press. You know, s on Israel. I do not. I don’t want to do that.”

In its statement, the Genesis Prize Foundation said it was “saddened” that Portman had decided not to attend the ceremony in Jerusalem for “political reasons.”

“We fear that Ms. Portman’s decision will cause our philanthropic initiative canada goose clearance sale to be politicized, something we have worked hard for the past five years to avoid,” said the Canada Goose Outlet foundation. “The canada goose factory sale mission of the Genesis canada goose uk black friday Prize is to create cheap Canada Goose a space where we can cast politics aside and come together to appreciate Jewish accomplishments Canada Goose Coats On Sale that continue to contribute so much to human civilization.”

It said hundreds of international guests had been scheduled to arrive in Jerusalem for the ceremony, set to take place Canada Goose online in Israel’s Knesset on June 28. The organization said Portman will still receive the prize money and was planning to “re gift” the notable sum among organizations canada goose uk outlet working to promote women’s rights and empowerment.