Do we like them?

Do we like Huda Kattan?

Our score: 5 out of 10. Real money and real risk-taking for Palestinians sit next to a video that drew conspiracy-theory condemnation and a deleted Iran repost.

Huda Kattan is the Iraqi-American makeup artist who turned a beauty blog into Huda Beauty, launched in 2013 and run out of Dubai. CNBC's profile says she never planned to be a businesswoman and drifted through jobs that didn't suit her before makeup took over. That self-made story is a big part of why her fans are so loyal.

The big stoush came in early August 2025, when a TikTok video of hers did the rounds. Reports say she suggested Israel was behind both world wars and 9/11. TikTok pulled the video, and groups including the ADL and AJC condemned the claims. She said her words were misinterpreted and misused, that she never mentioned Jews, and that a smear campaign was running against her.

On the harm check, the Israel video and the January 2026 Iran repost are the two marks against her. Reports on both show the conspiracy-theory slide the page looks for, though one video and one repost isn't a long run. No campaigning against LGBTQ+ or trans people, and no anti-vax or climate-denial claims, turned up in what I read. I didn't find her making a pattern of work with people who push harm.

The Iran episode was messier than it needed to be. She reposted a TRT World clip on 28 January 2026 and deleted it within hours after Iranian followers objected. She then posted apology Stories saying she does not support the Iranian regime. Critics said the apologies fell short and kept calling for a boycott, and reports said retailers were being pressed over stocking the brand.

The good stuff is real, though. She has been outspoken on Palestine in a way that risks sales. Huda Beauty teamed up with Palestinian-American singer Saint Levant on a lip oil whose proceeds went to Médecins Sans Frontières for Gaza medical relief, per The National. Some Palestinian voices questioned whether the gestures were enough, so where you land depends on how you read the intent.

On how she runs her business, the main court record is a US class action over the Neon Obsessions palettes. It settled and was closed out in 2022. In the settlement the company denied any wrongdoing. Nothing I found suggests she is feared as a boss, but I couldn't open the staff-side reporting, so that part is thin.