Harry Potter star Miriam Margolyes has denounced Israel's actions in Gaza in a video shared by The Jewish Council of Australia.
In the clip, the 83-year-old, who is Jewish and an Australian citizen, voiced how “ashamed” she is of the nation and its military actions, which have claimed the lives of more than 32,000 Palestinians to date.
The Call The Midwife actress claimed the actions of the country, governed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, had transformed Israel into a “vicious, genocidal nationalist nation, pursuing and killing women and children”.
She shared in the social media post: “I have never been so ashamed of Israel as I am at this moment.
“To me, it seems as if Hitler has won. He's changed us Jews from being compassionate and carrying into this vicious, genocidal, nationalist nation, pursuing and killing women and children.
“Of course I condemn of Hamas’ action. Of course I do. But what we are doing Jewish people over in Israel is shocking, embarrassing and wicked.”
The British-born star urged the Jewish community, particularly those in Israel, to “do the right thing” and “scream for a ceasefire”.
“And I cannot understand why all Jewish people, particularly members of synagogues do not want immediately to stop what is going on,” she continued.
“And in the name of humanity, I call upon all Jews to shout, beg, scream for a ceasefire.
“It is not antisemitic to have a different opinion on the wartime actions now. We have to do, as my mother used to say, ‘the right thing’.
“The right thing is a ceasefire to stop the killing, certainly, to beg and insist on the release of hostages.
“But there is an opinion about Israel's actions, which is not antisemitic to voice, what Israel is doing is wrong. It is wicked.”
Before concluding her video message, Margolyes once again called on the Jewish community to voice their “detestation” of Israel’s actions and urged them to behave “in accordance with Jewish tradition”.
“And if you want to say this is very bad for Israel, please call on your rabbis on your communities, on all the people you know, voice your disgust and detestation of the Israeli actions please, you are then doing the right thing and behaving in accordance with Jewish tradition,” she added. “Thank you.”
Margolyes has been outspoken about her position on the Israel-Gaza war and was one of the more 2,000 artists to have signed an open letter calling for a Gaza ceasefire in October.
Tilda Swinton, Charles Dance and Steve Coogan were also named on the letter, written by Artists For Palestine UK, which called for “an immediate ceasefire and the opening of Gaza’s crossings to allow humanitarian aid to enter unhindered”.
It also urged the signatories Governments to “end their military and political support for Israel’s actions”.
