Dawn French apologises for video after being accused of “mocking” Israel October 7 attacks

8 June, 2025

Dawn French has apologised for a video she posted on Instagram about the war in Gaza, saying she apologised “unreservedly” for it.

The actor and comedian was accused of “mocking” the October 2023 attack by Hamas at the Israeli music festival Supernova. In a 40-second video posted earlier this week, she said: “Complicated, no, but nuanced. But [the] bottom line is no.”

Switching into a high-pitched voice, she added: “Yeah, but you know they did a bad thing to us, yeah but no. But we want that land… and we have history… No. Those people aren’t really even people, are they really? No.”

The video led to backlash against French, with actress Tracy-Ann Oberman saying she was “so saddened” by the post.

“This mocking voice ‘bad thing’ of October 7 that Dawn (who I revere by the way) appears [to] be mocking involved the most horrific terrorist attack involving rape, sexual violence, burning alive, child mutilation and taking of civilian hostages,” she wrote.

MP Rosie Duffield then commented on Oberman’s post, writing: “One can, and should hate what is happening in Gaza and also condemn the hideous events of October 7th.

“It is agonising to see events unfold, and requires extremely careful, measured and well-considered comments and actions. This is not that.”

Screenwriter and activist Lee Kern also criticised the video, calling it “sneering mockery”.

Yesterday (June 7), French issued an apology, taking to social media to acknowledge that the clip “appeared one-sided”, and said: “My intention was NEVER to mock, or dismiss, or diminish the horror of what happened on 7 October 2023 and what continues to unfold from that brutal unthinkable, unforgiveable, savage attack.”

She went on to say that she had posted a video in the style that she has been using for social media “in an effort to convey an important point”, adding that she had “clumsily used a mocking tone”.

French explained her intention had been “to mock and point the finger of shame at the behaviour of the cruel leaders on all sides of this atrocious war”.

“THEY were my target, but clearly I failed to do that, and that’s on me. I apologise unreservedly, and I’m particularly sorry that my disgust at Hamas didn’t figure. It appeared one-sided and that is wrong.”

“I hope you will understand my intention was not to offend, but I clearly have. For which I am sorry and I have removed the video,” she added.

Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response to the Hamas-led cross-border attack almost 20 months ago, in which 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage, according to figures from The Guardian.

Around 54 of those captured remain in captivity, including 31 that the Israeli military say have been killed.

Since the conflict escalated in 2023, at least 54,249 people have been killed in Gaza, per  the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry. This included 3,986 people since Israel resumed its offensive, according to the territory’s health ministry.

Nearly 4,000 people have been killed there in the past 10 weeks alone, and the UN says another 600,000 people have been displaced by Israeli ground operations.

The IPC has also warned that half a million people in Gaza are facing catastrophic levels of hunger (via BBC).

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