Keith McNally has apologized for the inflammatory remarks he made about Israel following the recent terrorist attacks by Hamas.
The famed restaurateur insisted in a new statement posted to his typically inflammatory Instagram account that he has “never once” in his life “recognized nor supported Hamas.”
“It is a terrorist organization comprising of murderers and thugs,” his wrote. “I apologize for my post.”
McNally removed the post from his account and turned off comments on his mea culpa statement.
“Like most people, all I want is peace in the Middle East,” he concluded.
The Balthazar owner caused angst and uproar within the restaurant industry when he told his followers: “The More Utterly Repugnant The Facts, The Greater The Responsibility Becomes To Listen To The Other Side.”
After his headline-making message sent shock waves through the hospitality business, Page Six exclusively reported that top names from Surf Lodge and Sixty Hotels threatened never to step into a McNally-owned property again.
Sources told us that his partners in Morandi and Balthazar had asked him to remove the post, but McNally denied that and instead admitted that an associate connected to his reopened Meatpacking hotspot, Pastis, had confronted him about the statement.
Pastis’ landlord owner publicly commented on McNally’s “heinous” post, warning him that it would “lead to many lost friends, supporters and followers of you including myself.”
“This attack is not just against Israel but against all Jewish people,” Epstein later told us.
For more Page Six you love …
“Hamas is an enemy of Christians, Hindus, minorities, LGBTQ, atheists, people of color and anyone who differs from their extremist idealist ideology that all Jews must die. We all have skin in the game and must show our support for Israel.”
Initially, McNally had hit back at his critics by informing them that he’s “part Jewish” and “lived for long stretches of time on an Israeli kibbutz.”
“I think the atrocities perpetrated by Hamas are vile, barbaric and totally repugnant,” he continued in his comment, before doubling down on his controversial opinion.
“But I stand by what i wrote this morning: THE MORE UTTERLY REPUGNANT THE FACTS, THE GREATER THE RESPONSIBILITY TO LISTEN TO T HE OTHER SIDE. This doesn’t mean forgive,” he continued.T
“This doesn’t mean not retaliate. It simply means listen. There’s nothing to lose by listening. Nothing whatsoever.”
