ISRAELI-OCCUPIED WEST BANK — NBA guard Kyrie Irving changed his Instagram profile picture to an image of a Palestinian child blocked from attending school by Israeli soldiers in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. The image shows a young Palestinian boy sitting with a book as he turns to look at Israeli soldiers standing behind a barbed wire fence.

Irving's Instagram account has 20.2 million followers. Earlier this month, Palestinian schoolchildren in Umm al-Khair found a barbed wire fence blocking their route to school roughly 1 kilometer away. Settlers erected the barrier without legal authorization, and Israeli soldiers refused to remove it. Shortly after the fence went up, settlers built a large Star of David with stones on the side of the fence that the Palestinian schoolchildren can no longer access.

When the children, some as young as five years old, tried to go around the fence, soldiers launched tear gas and sound grenades at them. The community launched a march as part of a new initiative called the Umm al-Khair Freedom School, walking alongside the schoolchildren up to the fence as the children banged on drums and sang songs while soldiers watched from meters away. For stretches of time, the children sat on rocks adjacent to the barbed wire, took out their books and began working on schoolwork they had not done for more than 50 days.

The community faces Israeli demolition orders later this month due to a lack of building permits. Permits are rarely granted to Palestinians in Area C of the West Bank, which is entirely under the control of Israel.

Irving has previously attended events in support of Palestinian causes. In February, he attended an NBA All-Star game wearing a shirt that read "PRESS" to honor journalists covering Israel's war against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. In November 2024, he wore a chain with the Palestine flag in the shape of Israel's land mass during a pre-game interview. In 2023, he attended a post-match news conference wearing a keffiyeh, a cotton headdress with a distinctive chequered pattern representing Palestinian identity.

Irving and his representatives have not publicly commented on the profile picture change. The change was visible to his 20.2 million Instagram followers.