A Palestinian and an Israeli beauty queen will go head-to -head in this year's annual Miss Universe pageant.
Nadeen Ayoub, 27, will be the competition's first Miss Palestine - a title she gained in 2022 and has promised to carry 'the voice of a people who refuse to be silenced' into the contest.
In an Instagram post she wrote: 'Today, I step onto the Miss Universe stage not just with a title but with a truth...
'I represent every Palestinian woman and child whose strength the world needs to see. We are more than our suffering — we are resilience, hope and the heartbeat of a homeland that lives on through us.'
She will likely have an Israeli competitor as Israel has sent contestants to the competition since 1952.
