On the first day of November in the year 2023, James J. Marlow, a journalist, posted a photo on X with a caption that read, “Gal Gadot, the Israeli actress who portrayed ‘Wonder Woman’ in the famous Hollywood film, showed up for her army service.”
The statement is correct in its current form. Gal Gadot, who played the role of “Wonder Woman” in movies, was born in Israel and served in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) in the past. According to reports from Fox 32 Chicago and Jewish News, the photo shows Gadot during her military service.
Numerous readers misinterpreted Marlow’s post as an indication of Gadot’s enlistment in the Israeli Defense Forces to participate in the conflict in Israel and Gaza, which ensued following Hamas’ sudden attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. Though Marlow did not explicitly state this in his first post, he later added another post within two hours to explain his previous statement.
According to a direct message received from Marlow on X, he is presently employed as an analyst in foreign affairs and defense, specifically working on the Israel and Gaza conflict. He also mentioned his past experience working for major news organizations such as CNN, ITN, Reuters, and EuroNews. Marlow further stated that he has recently been bombarded with a significant amount of negative feedback from users who viewed his post.
Initially, Marlow had plans to remove the post as it caused some confusion about Gadot’s recent involvement. However, upon noticing the significant number of retweets and likes it received, Marlow decided to include a clarification tweet instead and decided to leave the original post up, believing that it did not cause any harm.
Gadot has a history in the military, having dedicated two years of her life to teaching combat fitness in the IDF before becoming a well-known figure. It is mandatory for all citizens in Israel to serve in the military, with women required to commit to a minimum of 24 months of service.