Debra Messing Sparks Backlash Over Israel Statements

Debra Messing faced with criticism across social media over comments she made at Tuesday’s rally in support of Israel in Washington, D.C.

The Will & Grace star was among the thousands who joined the “March for Israel,” which was organized by the Jewish Federations of North America, which said 290,000 people attended.

The protest was organized to call for the release of the hostages kidnapped by Hamas during the militant group’s surprise attack on Israel on October 7. Israel has subsequently launched its heaviest-ever military response in Gaza.

More than 1,200 people in Israel have died and 240 people were taken hostage by Hamas, the Associated Press reported. As of Wednesday, over 11,200 people have been killed in Gaza, the AP said, citing the Gaza Health Ministry, while thousands more have been injured and displaced.

Showing support for Israel, thousands of people packed into the National Mall in D.C., with many holding up posters of individuals still being held hostage by Hamas.

Messing described the war between Israel and Hamas in a speech as “madness,” adding: “This is terrorism. But we will win. We always have.”

“We are strong, resilient and devoted, and we will not lose ourselves,” Messing said to cheers from the crowd. “We will worry for our global Jewish family and also hurt for the innocent Palestinians used as human shields by Hamas. We will work to eviscerate Hamas and also pray for a free and flourishing Gaza.

“We will remember and work for the release of the 240 hostages, as well as for the safety of the 2.2 million Gazans also held hostage by Hamas. We will pray for the success of the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] for a war Israel did not start, did not want, but a war Israel will win. Because we must.”

She added: “I know you are alone, I know you are afraid, I know you feel abandoned by people you thought were friends. Looking out today I know we are not alone, because we have each other.”

While Messing’s speech included support for the Palestinian people, she faced a wave of criticism when a clip of her comments was posted on X, formerly Twitter. Some appeared to take issue with her not acknowledging the Palestinians killed in the conflict.

“What about all the innocent women, children, and babies killed by the IDF?” asked one X user in response to the video.

Taking aim at the celebrities who attended the event, including actor Michael Rapaport and CNN host Van Jones, another person said: “Maybe Israel really is in trouble if the best celebrities they could get for their big pro-Israel rally in DC were Michael Rapaport and Debra Messing.”

Others brought Messing’s political views into their criticism, with one person writing: “She is a Lefty who voted for Biden/Obama. They empowered Iran with billions which was then transferred to Hamas. She can’t connect the dots.”

“Sorry but I don’t believe anything this crazy liberal is saying,” another commented. “Liberals in the White House are the ones who empowered Iran…They caused our families, friends, neighbors to be murdered, kidnapped…NEVER FORGET…!!!”

The X users appeared to be alluding to the claim that former President Barack Obama gave $150 billion of U.S. funds to Iran in 2015, thus indirectly funding Hamas.

In 2015, as part of an international deal with Iran called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, Iran agreed to cut back on nuclear enrichment programs in exchange for the unfreezing of its own assets. U.S. taxpayers paid nothing toward this, as has been implied in the past, and the value of the assets was said by some, including the U.S. Treasury, to be less than $150 billion.

Amid the criticism, there was also support for Messing from several X users, including Ted Deutch, CEO of the American Jewish Committee, who shared a photo of himself posing with the actress at the event.

“Thank you, Debra Messing, for your powerful address today at the #MarchForIsrael and for using your platform to advocate for the Jewish community,” Deutch captioned the image.

“Debra Messing is LOUDLY calling out antisemitism,” said an X user. “She’s fearlessly calling out what Hamas has done to both Israelis and Palestinians! Absolutely brilliant speech.”

Another supporter commented that Messing “is bravely doing her part despite the backlash she is getting.”

Messing has also faced criticism on Instagram, where she has been voicing her support for Israel in the weeks since the conflict began. On November 13, Messing reposted a text image that suggested Hamas’ actions have resulted in “violent protests against Jews worldwide.”

“Pakistan already expels 250,000 Arabs, and moves to expel 1.7 million total to Taliban rule,” read the post. “No marches, only silence.” It said that there was also silence after “Jihadi militias murdered more than 800 people from the Massalit tribe in Darfur, Sudan in just the past few days.”

“Hamas breaks an existing cease-fire with Israel on October 7th, murdering raping, beheading, burning, bombing, and kidnapping innocent civilians,” the post continued, concluding that it resulted in “violent protests against Jews worldwide.”

The post sparked outrage from a number of Instagram users, including one who told Messing: “I just want you to know, I’m not unfollowing you because you’re Jewish or because you’re passionate about defending your people, I think that’s great. I’m unfollowing because you are blinded by your faith to the suffering of others. To the suffering inflected by Israel on over 10,000 innocent civilians.

“I’m not anti-Semitic and when you or your manager looks at your follower numbers and sees how many people left, please do not say ‘they’re just all anti-Semitic.’ We aren’t. We’re just capable of believing two truths at once. Capable of understanding that people can be both victim and perpetrator. Most importantly, capable of understanding that ‘defending itself’ should not mean the death of more than 10,000 innocent people, half of which are children.”

Amid the criticism Messing shared an addendum to her caption that read: “If you support the freedom and independence of Palestinians, you are NOT anti-Semitic.
If you blame the Israel’s actions on Jews everywhere, you are an antisemite.
If you march and scream Free Gaza, you are Not anti-Semitic. If you scream ‘from the river to the sea Palestine will be free’—Hamas’ phrase for killing all the Jews and wiping Israel off the map—you are antisemite.

“If you say that it’s been a complex, difficult history between Israel and Palestine because of the historical ties both have to the land, and the mistakes both sides have made—you are not antisemitic.

“If you say Israelis are colonizers and it is an apartheid state—besides not fitting the definition of either claims and being [factually] wrong—you are an antisemite.
If you disagree with Jewish students on your campus—you are not an antisemite.
If you threaten, attack, intimidate, chase, trap in libraries Jewish students and don’t denounce calls to gas the Jews, or slit their throats etc—you are an antisemite.

“If you are marching for Palestinian displacement and liberation and the end to the killing and you DON’T for the million in China, the 800 in Darfur, the 1.5 million in the Congo—you are an antisemite.”

According to figures from Social Blade, Messing lost 62 of her 1.4 million followers on the day that she shared the post. She has since resumed gaining followers.