Desperate Housewives actor Marcia Cross condemns silence on Israel's war on Gaza
American actress Marcia Cross, best known for her role as Bree Van de Kamp in the US series Desperate Housewives, has said that she is “struggling to comprehend” living alongside people that remain silent and blind to atrocities taking place in Gaza.
The 61-year-old called for a ceasefire on Instagram in a series of posts, demanding an end to Israel’s war on Gaza, which has so far killed over 28,000 Palestinians since 7 October.
In a post published on Monday, she wrote: “I am struggling to comprehend how to live among people with eyes that don’t water, hearts that don’t flinch and voices that remain silent.”
In the caption, she added: “There are no words for the horror that has and is being unleashed. And the silence has me believing I am deaf.”
The actor called for an end to Israel’s bombardment of Rafah, where around 1.3 million Palestinians have been forcibly displaced from other cities around Gaza.
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On X, she reposted a number of videos from Rafah, following at least 50 air strikes that have killed over 100 people, as Israel vowed to launch a ground offensive in the area.
Videos reposted by Cross show seriously wounded Palestinians, including children, being transported to health facilities amidst a lack of ambulances. Some of the videos show people mourning their loved ones who were killed in the attacks.
Cross highlighted that the intensified attacks on Rafah came at the same time as the US Super Bowl, something she criticised and said she was “upset” by as the “slaughter” continued.
Other videos shared by the actor show the Israeli army preventing a Red Crescent ambulance from entering the Nour Shams refugee camp in the occupied West Bank, displaced children in an Unrwa school fleeing from Israeli bombing in Gaza, and a Palestinian child trapped under the rubble of a bombed building in Gaza.
In response to a video of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Cross says that “he has already lost the war, even if they kill every member of Hamas”.
Hollywood celebrities speak out
Cross is not the only Hollywood celebrity to call for a ceasefire and condemn Israel’s actions in Gaza.
A-Lister Mark Ruffalo also joined in the calls for a ceasefire at the DGA awards in Beverly Hills on Saturday, explaining that the pins on his lapel symbolised “peace lilies and Artists for Ceasefire”.
“We’ve come to understand this bombing isn’t working, we’re not going to bomb our way to peace, and all we’re saying is, what’s wrong with giving a ceasefire a chance?” he said.
“We have a million refugees on the border of Rafah right now, who are looking at another bombing surge, and we have 400,000 people starving to death right now, without any humanitarian aid being able to get in there.”
Chilean-born actor Pedro Pascal has also called for a ceasefire, posting a photo of himself holding a placard bearing the logo of medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) that reads "Ceasefire Now".
Pascal, 48, is known for his role as the lead character in Disney's Mandalorian series, as well as playing Oberyn Martell in Game of Thrones and Joel in The Last of Us.
Israel intensified its attacks on Rafah this week, despite it being declared a “safe zone” for civilians.
Plans for a ground assault on Rafah were last week requested by Netanyahu, along with a plan “for evacuating the population”.
The attacks have left Palestinians sheltering there in panic and despair as they fear a ground assault in the southernmost city of Gaza.
The area around Rafah, which is estimated to be around a fifth of Gaza, has become a squalid tent city. The Palestinians there have nowhere else to go, and are sheltering in makeshift tents or the open air, with little access to food, water or medicine.
Doctors Without Borders has warned that "Israel's declared ground offensive on Rafah would be catastrophic and must not proceed."
This article is available in French on Middle East Eye French edition.
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