Israeli Singers Gal Juma and Asulin Face Backlash Over Video Similar to Palestinian Artist's Clip

Israeli singers Gal Juma and Asulin released a music video for their joint song "Zehara" about two weeks ago, directed by Bruce Malan. The video quickly gained international attention, but not for positive reasons. An Instagram account of the magazine Plastik highlighted striking similarities between their clip and a 2024 video titled "Ganeni" by Palestinian singer Eliana. This led to thousands of hateful comments accusing the Israeli singers of copying, with some comments politicizing the issue by calling it "a stolen clip filmed on stolen land."

In an interview with mako, Juma and Asulin denied any prior knowledge of Eliana or her video, stating they filmed their clip without familiarity with the Palestinian artist or her work. They only became aware of the controversy after Israeli media coverage. Both singers described receiving an overwhelming number of messages, including threats. Asulin noted that the controversy even reached her contacts in Europe, some of whom shared the Plastik magazine post tagging her without seeking her side of the story.

The singers chose not to respond publicly to most comments to avoid fueling further racist and hostile discourse online. They emphasized their pride in the song and video, saying they do not regret the clip and remain confident in their work. The apparent similarity between the two videos is believed to be due to someone else on the production team, as Juma and Asulin were unaware of the resemblance.

The controversy around "Zehara" began even before the clip's release. In July, while filming promotional videos in Jaffa with local women, some participants claimed they were unaware the footage would be published online and requested its removal. Despite the backlash, the single continues to gain popularity and attention.

Summary: Israeli singers Gal Juma and Asulin faced thousands of hateful comments after their new music video was found to closely resemble a 2024 clip by Palestinian singer Eliana. The Israeli artists denied prior knowledge of the Palestinian video and expressed no regrets, while the controversy sparked political accusations and online threats. The issue appears linked to the production team rather than the singers themselves.