Huda Beauty dropped from Sephora's fall campaign over Palestine stance

Sephora, a global beauty retail chain, has reportedly removed Huda Beauty, the renowned cosmetic brand founded by Iraqi-American entrepreneur Huda Kattan, from its forthcoming fall campaign after she posted a video saying Israel is the mastermind behind significant political problems throughout the world.

Sephora's fall campaign is one of the year's biggest and most anticipated, starring make-up icons such as Gucci Westman, Patrick Starr, and Mario Dedivanovic.

In a video posted in August on her official TikTok account, she said, “Israel has been behind WW1, WW2, Sept 11, Oct 7. They allowed all this to happen. They used Oct 7th as an excuse (for the atrocities in Gaza).”

She further alleged that pedophilia is a rampant issue in Israel.

Her remarks came shortly after Tom Artiom Alexandrovich, a 38-year-old senior Israeli cyber official working under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, returned to Israel following his arrest during a child sex sting operation in Nevada, United States. Alexandrovich was later released without charges, Siasat Daily reported.

Kattan’s TikTok video sparked widespread backlash from Western media, with many outlets labelling her statements as “anti-semitic.”

In response, Kattan clarified that her comments had been misinterpreted, stating that her criticism was directed at Israeli government policies and not at Jews or Judaism. She also accused her critics of running a defamation campaign against her. The video has since been deleted.

Sephora, meanwhile, has remained largely ambiguous about the controversy. In early August, a spokesperson said the company was reviewing the matter but declined to share further details. Reports suggest that Kattan had initially been positioned as a key figure in Sephora’s September launch promotion.

Huda Beauty’s removal from Sephora’s upcoming fall campaign is reportedly linked not only to Huda Kattan’s controversial TikTok video but also to her outspoken stance on the situation in Gaza and other Israeli-occupied territories. Since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on October 7, 2023, Kattan has used her social media platforms to highlight the suffering of Palestinians and condemn the violence.

In addition to speaking out, Kattan has donated USD 1 million to two humanitarian organisations operating in Gaza: Human Appeal and Doctors Without Borders. She has also contributed 1 million AED to various social causes as part of her corporate social responsibility initiatives.

Her vocal support for Palestinians has drawn significant backlash from sections of Western media, which have labelled her views as anti-semitic.

Huda Kattan, an Iraqi-American influencer-turned-entrepreneur based in the UAE, was born and raised in the United States to Iraqi immigrant parents.

Huda Kattan began her career in the beauty industry as a makeup artist for Revlon. In 2013, she launched Huda Beauty, introducing false eyelashes as one of her first products through Sephora. The brand quickly gained popularity, and over time, she expanded the product line to include eyeshadow palettes, liquid lipsticks, lip liners, highlighter palettes, foundations, concealers, baking powders, and liquid eyeshadows, which propelled her to global fame.

As of 2025, Huda has amassed 54 million followers on Instagram.

Huda Beauty, headquartered in Dubai, UAE, has become one of the best-selling cosmetics brands in Sephora stores across the Middle East and is also among the top-performing brands at Harrods in London.