Lebanon wants Wonder Woman film banned because the movie star is from israel

Lebanon officially known as the Lebanese Republic, a sovereign state in Western Asia has called for ban of the new Wonder Woman movie because its star, Gal Gadot, is from Israeli.

A security official said a formal request for a ban has not yet been received. A ban would require a recommendation from a six-member committee from the Ministry of Economy, a process that has not yet began, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporter.

The premiere of Wonder Woman is scheduled for Wednesday in at least one cinema in Beirut. Posters of the movie and digital billboards have sprouted up around the Lebanese capital.

Since Israel’s Independence in 1948, the relationship between the countries has been a strained one. For decades Lebanon has prohibited Lebanese citizens from having contact with Israelis and traveling to Israel. Lebanon also bars Israeli products from crossing into its borders. Wonder Woman and its leading lady falls under that law of the land.

A group called Campaign to Boycott Supporters of Israel-Lebanon has pressed an effort against the movie. On its Facebook page, the campaign said Gadot was a soldier in the Israeli army and has expressed support for Israel's military policies against the Gaza Strip, a coastal Palestinian territory run by the militant group Hamas.

"The state took the right decision," Samah Idriss, a member of the boycott campaign told The Associated Press. "We now await the implementation. ... Even if it is one hour before the show, they should ban it anyway"

Source: Associated Press