PARIS — The model making history by being featured in a headscarf for a hair care advertising campaign is pulling out of it due to controversy over alleged tweets she penned in 2014.
Amena Khan announced on Instagram on Monday that she deeply regrets the tweets she sent and apologized for any hurt she may have caused. CNN has not been able to view the tweets, but she is being accused of expressing “anti-Israel” views in 2014.
“I recently took part in a campaign, which excited me because it celebrated inclusivity,” her statement read. “With deep regret, I’ve decided to step down from this campaign because the current conversations surrounding it detract from the positive and inclusive sentiment that it set out to deliver.”
This comes just a week after the British blogger announced she was included in the L’Oreal Paris hair care campaign. In the advertisement she wore a pale pink headscarf and stood in front of a bright pink background.
“Whether or not your hair is on display,” she says in the ad, “doesn’t affect how much you care about it.”
She received praise online for empowering women and girls, especially for those wearing hijabs. But this was soon met with backlash over her tweets that she has since deleted.
“We have recently been made aware of a series of tweets posted in 2014 by Amena Khan, who was featured in a UK advertising campaign,” a L’Oreal spokesperson told CNN. “We appreciate that Amena has since apologized for the content of these tweets and the offence they have caused. L’Oréal Paris is committed to tolerance and respect towards all people. We agree with her decision to step down from the campaign.”
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2018 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.(PHOTO: L’Oreal Paris via CNN)
