Death threats have forced the family of Iraq's Miss Universe to flee the country after the beauty queen posed for a selfie with Miss Israel, according to media reports.
Iraqi contestant Sarah Idan, 27, posed for a selfie with Miss Israel Adar Gandelsman at the Miss Universe pageant in Las Vegas last month in an effort to foster tolerance between the Arab and Israeli worlds.
Idan, who lives in the US, posted a photo on Instagram with the caption: "Peace and love Miss Iraq and Miss Israel."
Although the post received more than 3,600 "likes", many Iraqi citizens were incensed by the image.
Gandelsman says that she and Idan are close friends who have remained in touch since the pageant and she told Israeli TV that Idan's family feared for their lives following brutal threats.
"People made threats against her and her family that if she didn’t return home and take down the photos, they would remove her (Miss Iraq) title, that they would kill her," Gandelsman said.
“She did it to so that people can understand that it’s possible to live together, for people to see that we can connect, in the end we are both human beings,” she said.
Following the backlash, Idan, who lives in the U.S., tweeted: “I’m not the first nor the last person to face prosecution over a matter of personal freedom. Millions of Iraqi women live in fear. #freeiraqiwomen.”
Tensions have escalated between the Muslim and Jewish states since US President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, a move that enraged many Arab leaders who want East Jerusalem to be the capital of a Palestinian state.
Four Palestinians died in violent exchanges with Israeli forces on Friday during violent riots in the West Bank and Gaza.
Idan, a Muslim, was born and raised in Baghdad and worked with the American military from 2008 until she moved to the United States and got a degree in Los Angeles.