Schwarzenegger, Stallone express support for Israel

Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone and Seth Rogen are among the top Hollywood stars that have called against the “singling out” of Israel, Haaretz reported on Saturday.

Signing a petition created by the U.S.-based Creative Community For Peace (CCFP) organization, the stars condemned Palestinian Islamist group Hamas’ “ideologies of hatred,” as well as expressing anger at the drive to boycott Israel over its war on Gaza.

The war has resulted in the death of more than 2,000 Palestinians and 68 people on the Israeli side since the conflict began in July

Other celebrities signing the CCEP included Sarah Silverman, Minnie Driver, Ziggy Marley, Kelsey Grammer, Tom Arnold, Benji Madden, director Ivan Reitman, writer Aaron Sorkin, producer Michael Rotenberg, composer Michael Nyman, producer Haim Saban, Justin Bieber’s manager Scooter Braun.

According to Haaretz, the letter stated, “While we stand firm in our commitment to peace and justice, we must also stand firm against ideologies of hatred and genocide, which are reflected in Hamas' charter.” But in recent weeks several celebrities have spoken out against Israel’s attacks on Gaza.

Earlier this month, Penelope Cruz and husband Javier Bardem reportedly faced harsh reactions from top Hollywood executives after signing an open letter condemning the actions of Israel as “genocide” and supporting Gaza.

Infographic: Celebrities take sides on Gaza war

Along with the couple, Oscar winning director Pedro Almodovar and a hundred other film professionals signed the open Spanish letter calling on the European Union to end Israel’s military operation in Gaza.

Cruz and Bardem were the latest celebrities to publicize their views on the ongoing conflict in Gaza, along with One Direction’s Zayn Malik, Selena Gomez and Russell Brand.