Influencer living in Dubai sparks backlash over ‘insensitive’ content during airstrikes

A British influencer living in Dubai has sparked backlash with their content as the conflict in the Middle East continues.

The US and Israel launched joint strikes against Iran on Saturday (28 February), which killed at least 555 people in the region, as reported by Al Jazeera, including the country's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

According to US President Donald Trump, the reasoning behind the attacks was to 'ensure that Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon'.

Iran quickly retaliated by firing ballistic missiles and drones at a slew of American assets and allies, targeting Israel, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Residents sheltered indoors as the city was attacked, and Dubai International Airport has subsequently closed, meaning thousands of people are stranded.

Within the Palm Jumeirah is Dubai's five-star Fairmont The Palm hotel, which is among the buildings struck by a large explosion.

The UK's Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper, indicated that 102,000 British nationals have registered their presence in the region.

Dubai has been targeted amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East (Christopher Pike/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

She said around 300,000 British citizens, visitors, residents, and those in transit are in Gulf countries targeted by Iran, and British nationals are being advised to follow the instructions of local authorities and monitor the Foreign Office’s travel advice, which officials expect to change rapidly.

Among them is 30-year-old Miles Nazaire, a British reality TV star who's best known for starring in the E4 series Made in Chelsea.

He's since come under fire for posting social media content about getting ready for a date in the midst of the attacks, specifically a video of him putting on an outfit.

In the comments of his Instagram post, users penned: "Miles we r at war Rn," and: "Tone def posting this at a time like this. You really are self-absorbed and disconnected from reality."

While someone else wrote: "Aww Miles, not the time to post trivia, I have friends and family in Dubai, and they are scared."

"Bombs dropping, but let's go on a date, brilliant," another follower sarcastically wrote.

While someone else reasoned: "This post was probably already scheduled.... But are you and those you love okay?"

A British influencer in Dubai has sparked backlash for posting an outfit video during the airstrikes (Instagram/@milesjnazaire)

And another added: "Is this really what you think is a priority right now when you could use your platform to help influence about important things in this moment of madness in the Middle East???"

Meanwhile, someone else brutally wrote: "This has got to be the most out of touch post known to mankind, even just your story said 'we don't know what's going on' is the epitome of ignorant.. like wtf. Read a news story once in a while. People are dying, bro."

The influencer took to his Instagram Story following the backlash to share an explanation with his 444,000 followers.

He said: "I'm not being insensitive. It was a video that I had edited that morning and posted, and it wasn't posting. And unfortunately, it went live as everything was going on, so I just want to clear that up.

"I'm not posting some random content to be like 'Ah, look, I don't really care what's going on in Dubai. I live here now, and I saw the missiles, so I know what's going on, so yeah, just to clear that up."

Tyla has contacted a rep for Nazaire for additional comments.

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