A woman who will appear as Miss Palestine in a global beauty pageant has said she wants to represent her culture and “show the world that we are human beings”.
Nadeen Ayoub told Sky News she wants to “speak up about Palestine and to carry the voices of those that are unheard”.
Speaking on The World With Yalda Hakim, she said she became Miss Palestine in 2022 and will now head to Thailand in November to compete against dozens of others at Miss Universe.
“I don’t want people to be thinking when they hear the word Palestine, to just be thinking of suffering and pain,” said Ms Ayoub.
“So just like we hear the word ‘Italy’ and we think of beautiful things, like the Amalfi Coast and pizza and pasta.
“When we think of other nations, we think of their heritage and their culture and their identity, and we see them as human beings.
“I want the same thing for Palestine to show the world that we are human beings, and that is simply my message.”
Ms Ayoub was partly raised in the US and Canada and now reportedly splits her time between Dubai, Ramallah, and Amman.
She was supposed to compete in Miss Universe following success as Miss Palestine at another pageant in 2022.
However, she told Sky News she delayed her entry until now after the Hamas attack on Israel sparked the Gaza war.
The 27-year-old has been criticised by some for calling the dire situation there a “genocide” during an interview last month. Israel denies all accusations of genocide.
Among her critics is the runner-up in the Miss Israel contest, who questioned Ms Ayoub’s inclusion in November’s pageant and urged her to speak out against Hamas.
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“Miss Universe stands for unity, peace and co-existence – and if she stands for all of those things then let’s have it,” Adela Cojab Moadeb told the NY Post.
“I would welcome an advocate who stands against extremism and stands for the right of all people to exist.”
Ms Ayoub declined to comment in her Sky News interview, stressing her message is to “show the world that we Palestinians have an identity of creativity, of talents, of heritage, of culture”.
