Miss Israel's selfie with Miss Iraq goes viral but the Middle East is outraged

The beauty queens of enemy states Iraq and Israel set an inspiring example by sharing a selfie together, but apparently not everyone is happy.

It all started with Miss Israel Adar Gandelsman sharing a photo on her Facebook page alongside Miss Iraq Sarah Idan ahead of the Miss Universe 2017 contest, which is scheduled to take place in Las Vegas, US, on 26 November.

"Practicing bringing world peace," she captioned the picture shared on 14 November. Gandelsman also gushed about her fellow competitor on Instagram, where she shared the same image again. "Get to know, this is Miss Iraq and she's amazing," her post caption read.

Idan had also shared the selfie on her Instagram.

However, the photos shared by the young women received a mixed reaction from social media users. While many hailed the girls for their innocent effort towards bringing peace, a number of people also expressed their unhappiness and called it "shameful".

"So beautiful you both @adar_gandelsman. Hope you will bring peace and people all over the world together! We should never lose faith that one day our world will live in peace, freedom and unity," one social media user wrote, praising the beauty queens' effort.

"These small gestures where humans meet each other — doesn't matter which nationality or religion — and enjoy the company of each other. Just because.... unpayable," added another.

However, several users from the Middle East were outraged and trolled the Iraqi beauty queen with their scathing comments. "You should be stripped of your title. Shame on you. You make me sick," one wrote.

"No peace. You are one of the reasons why this world is full of hatred. Ur family is a disgrace to humanity," wrote another.

Who is Adar Gandelsman: The Miss Israel for the international beauty pageant is only 19 and is a second-year soldier in the Israeli Defense Force. Adar has a devoted non-profit Israeli organisation named Varaity that works with children with disabilities and she aspires to open an animal shelter and raise awareness for the prevention of dog abuse.

Who is Sarah Idan: The 27-year-old Miss Iraq 2017 is passionate about music and travelled to Los Angeles to fulfill her dream to become a singer and songwriter.