Trump Gets Criticized for Smiling While Holding a 'Kidnapped' Poster: “Selfish Human Being”

To mark the first anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack, former president Donald Trump paid a visit to Ohel, the Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson's burial site in New York, on Monday. Many Jews, especially Chabad's Hassidic followers, view the Ohel as a sacred place. Ben Shapiro, Daily Wire co-founder, who accompanied the Republican leader posted an update on X with pictures from the holy site. The post soon went viral as netizens slammed Trump for using yet another revered site as a 'photo op' for his campaign.

According to The Jerusalem Post, Trump was joined by the parents of Edan Alexander, who is being held captive in the Gaza Strip by terrorists, Roy, Adi, and Yael Alexander; Jerry Wartski, an Auschwitz death camp survivor; and two Jewish college students who have been victims of antisemitism on campus. One of the images featured the GOP candidate insensitively grinning while holding a picture of one of the young hostages, Edan.

Shapiro captioned the X post, "October 7 was the greatest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. It was an honor to join President Trump in NY today to pay our respects and remember the lives lost in the horrific terrorist attack one year ago today. I had the additional honor of being accompanied by Yael, Adi, and Roy Alexander whose son and brother, Edan, an American citizen, is still held captive by Hamas. Today and every day we pray for the swift return of all the hostages and a victory over those who sponsored and perpetrated October 7."

According to Raw Story, netizens labeled Trump's actions 'disgusting.' "...From this event today there is a disgusting grinning Trump holding up a hostage picture! This is a f-cking photo op for him. Our pain is nothing but a photo op," an X user raged. "Shouldn’t someone have at least told Trump’s dumbass not to smile while holding a hostage poster?" chimed another. "The guy who had the National Guard clear a street in DC so he could stand in front of a church with a Bible he held upside down will do anything for a photo op. He's a despicably selfish human being," a person pointed out. 

"Trump used this tragic day as a campaign stop and made it all about him," a person agreed. "Someone please tell me this disgusting sociopathic piece of sh-t isn’t smiling for a photo op holding a hostage photo from the Oct 7 attack. Please tell me this is fake. My blood is boiling," echoed another. "Trump doesn't know how to act in real-life situations. He even brought Ben Shapiro to try to make him look normal but that just makes it all worse," another condemned. 

As netizens rightly pointed out, this is not the first time Trump has turned a tragic event into a photo session. The former president and with wife Melania faced harsh backlash in 2019 after smiling and giving the thumbs up in a picture with a baby who had been left orphaned by the tragic El Paso massacre. 

According to CBS Austin, Melania posted the picture on her official handle with the caption, "I met many incredible people in Dayton, Ohio & El Paso, Texas yesterday. Their communities are strong and unbreakable. @potus and I stand with you!" CNN's Jim Acosta reported that a hospital official had remarked that Trump displayed “an absence of empathy” during the hospital visit. Jordan and Andre Anchondo, the parents of the 2-month-old infant, were shot and killed during the incident.