Marvel Studios allegedly revised the background of "Israeli" superhero Sabra for her depiction in the upcoming film "Captain America: Brave New World," set for release in February 2025, the Jerusalem Post and New York Times (NYT) reported.

Sabra's “Israeli” roots have been removed, and the character's history has been significantly altered, according to an official summary released on Friday.

In the original Marvel Comics, Ruth Bat-Seraph, known as Sabra, is portrayed as a mutant superhero and Mossad agent. However, the new film summary describes Bat-Seraph as a former member of the Soviet Russian Black Widow super spy program; the same program that trained Scarlett Johansson's character, Natasha Romanoff, in the Avengers series. 

Sabra first appeared in the 1980s in the Incredible Hulk comic series, created by writer Bill Mantlo and artist Sal Buscema. The character possesses superhuman strength, speed, and the ability to transfer life force. She is typically armed with a cape that enables her to fly and shoot quills.

“Israeli” actress Shira Hass will portray Bat-Seraph, who is now depicted as "a former Black Widow, Ruth is now a high-ranking US government official who has the trust of President [Thaddeus] Ross." 

The summary omits any mention of her codename, Sabra, which derives from a slang term for a native-born “Israeli”, though other characters in the film retain their alter-egos.

However, when Marvel first announced Sabra’s inclusion in the "Captain America" film, Palestinians and their supporters criticized the decision, arguing that the character glorified “Israel”. The hashtag #CaptainApartheid emerged on social media, reflecting the controversy.

Sani Meo, publisher of This Week in Palestine, commented at the time, “The bottom line is that to Palestinians, Marvel having an Israeli superhero whitewashes the occupation.”

In light of the Israeli Occupation bombardment and aggression in the Gaza Strip, questions have resurfaced about Marvel Studios' handling of the character.

Following the announcement of Hass’s casting by Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige at the 2022 D23 Expo, American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) launched a letter campaign against Disney and Marvel Studios. 

The campaign described the character's inclusion as "distasteful," asserting that Sabra represented "a state recognized by the entire human rights community as an apartheid regime, guilty of ongoing war crimes and crimes against humanity against the Palestinian people."

AMP criticized the portrayal of an “Israeli” Mossad agent, arguing that it normalized the "murderous intelligence agency" and evoked painful memories of the Sabra neighborhood massacre during the Lebanese Civil War in 1982. 

AMP called on Disney and Marvel Studios to cancel the character’s inclusion in the film.

In response to the backlash, Marvel Studios emphasized that while their characters are inspired by the original comics, they are often reimagined for contemporary audiences. "The filmmakers are taking a new approach with the character Sabra who was first introduced in the comics over 40 years ago," Marvel stated in 2022.

The American Jewish Committee (AJC) expressed discontent on social media, stating, "Marvel’s decision to strip the Israeli identity of Sabra is a betrayal of the character’s creators and fans and a capitulation to intimidation. Sabra is a proud Israeli hero, and should be portrayed as such. Taking away such a central part of her identity would be like making Captain America Canadian."

“Israeli” writer Hen Mazzig responded to the news by pointing out the perceived double standards, noting on social media that it was deemed acceptable to make Bat-Seraph Russian amidst Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but not “Israeli”. 

Mazzig also highlighted Marvel’s efforts to include diverse superheroes in response to discrimination, contrasting this with the decision to erase "the only Israeli superhero" in response to recent events and a rise in anti-Semitism.

Video game and culture commentator Brianna Wu accused Marvel of stripping Sabra of her identity for "political expediency" due to the criticism. 

"Marvel had no issue with ignoring the morons for Black Panther. And even though Marvels was awful, they stuck to their guns," Wu commented. "Guess Jews don’t count."