Chicago – August 18, 2025
This November, as Nadeen Ayoub steps on to the Miss Universe stage alongside contestants from over 120 countries, she will do more than make history as Palestine’s first participant – she will carry the courage and spirit of her people on a global stage.
“When you have that power, you have a responsibility to speak out. And I feel a huge responsibility,” she tells The National. “Miss Universe is a huge platform, and there’s a big responsibility in speaking out about what’s happening in the Gaza. No one should be silent about the injustice that’s happening. This is the time when Palestine needs to be represented on all platforms everywhere.”
Crowned Miss Palestine in 2022, Ayoub, 27, made history that year when she represented her country for the first time at the Miss Earth pageant, where she was one of the top five finalists. But she had to put her future plans as a title holder on hold after conflict broke out in Gaza in 2023.
“There hasn’t been another Miss Palestine since 2022 because of the genocide,” she says. “After Miss Earth, I was supposed go to Miss Universe. But I postponed it because I did not want to go when genocide was happening. I wanted to focus more on staying behind the scenes because the spotlight was supposed to be on the people in Palestine who are suffering, rather than me.”
But as violence raged and the humanitarian crises in Palestine worsens, Ayoub felt compelled to use her platform and voice to raise awareness about her people’s plight.
“Palestinian people’s voices need to be heard, not only the women and children, but everyone,” she says. “The Palestinian woman is a beautiful woman who has a voice that is strong, that’s resilient, that is powerful and that is angelic. And I want to show the world that side of Palestine.”
