JAKARTA - Oscar-winning actor George Clooney called Donald Trump's threats against Iran a war crime. He made the statement while speaking to about 3,000 high school students in Cuneo, Italy, at an event held by the Clooney Foundation for Justice.
Clooney alluded to Trump's statement that "the whole civilization will die tonight". Quoted from The Guardian report, Thursday, April 9, he considered such statements to have crossed the line. According to the actor who once played the character of Batman, someone can still support conservative views, but there must still be a limit to decency that should not be violated.
The response from the White House came via communications director Steven Cheung. To The Independent, he said the only person who committed war crimes was Clooney, "because of his bad films and his bad acting".
Clooney then responded again in a statement to Deadline. He said families lost loved ones, children were burned to death, and the world economy was on the brink. According to Clooney, situations like this should be faced with serious debate at the highest level, not mocking each other. He also quoted the Genocide Convention and the Rome Statute when explaining the basis of his speech.
As reported by The Guardian, the tension between Clooney and Trump is not new. Clooney has always been known as a supporter and contributor to the Democratic Party. In 2024, he also came into the spotlight after writing an opinion in the New York Times asking Joe Biden to withdraw from the presidential nomination.
Although now on the opposite side, Clooney once admitted that he was quite close to Trump before Trump became president. To Variety last year, he said Trump used to call him often and had tried to help with hospital affairs. However, according to Clooney, the relationship changed after Trump entered the White House.
Trump himself has for years often responded to Clooney's criticism with personal attacks. On various occasions, he has called Clooney a "second-rate movie star", "third-rate actor", "fake movie actor", and "traitor". In January, Trump also criticized France's decision to grant Clooney and his family French citizenship.
In response, Clooney told The Hollywood Reporter, referring to the November 3 US midterm elections, "We have to make America great again. We start in November."
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