Does Howie Mandel Support Israel?

Tal Feldman Feb 18, 2025 3 min read

Short answer: As of July 2026, Howie Mandel is a publicly identified, actively pro-Israel Jewish comedian and TV host. He has praised Israel in interviews, signed a major post-October 7 entertainment-industry letter backing Israel's right to defend itself, headlined a "Roast of Antisemitism" comedy benefit, and speaks openly about his Jewish practice and family ties. There is no record of him criticizing Israel, joining any boycott of Israel, or taking an anti-Israel position.

What Howie Mandel has actually said and done

June 16, 2023: Mandel headlined and closed a sold-out "Roast of Antisemitism" comedy benefit at the Saban Theater in Beverly Hills, alongside comedian Modi Rosenfeld, before roughly 1,900 attendees, urging the audience to take pride in Jewish identity, according to The Jerusalem Post.
October 12, 2023: Days after the Hamas attack on Israel, Mandel was among more than 2,000 entertainment-industry signatories on the Creative Community For Peace open letter "Israel Under Attack," which called the attack "barbaric acts of terrorism" and affirmed Israel's right to defend itself. His signature is documented by Reverse Canary Mission, a watchdog site critical of Israel that catalogs entertainment figures who backed Israel after October 7, and corroborated by Unpacked (OpenDor Media).
2023 to 2025, post-October 7 period: In interviews reported by Unpacked, Mandel called Israel "this little pit bull surrounded by her enemies" that "epitomizes what North America and much of the world should be, in terms of democracy and freedom," and said Israel "makes me even prouder to be a Jew." He also encouraged Jewish and non-Jewish people alike to visit Israel.
2023 to 2025: On his podcast, per the same Unpacked report, Mandel discussed rising antisemitism after October 7, saying "the reality is antisemitism is alive and well, is growing, is warming up," and voiced support for the hostages held by Hamas.
Ongoing, lifelong: Mandel, born to Jewish parents in Toronto in 1955 and educated at a Toronto synagogue Hebrew school, is a distant cousin of Israeli violinist Itzhak Perlman. After his father's death, he arranged for ten Jewish men to travel with him on tour so he could say Kaddish daily for a year, as detailed by Unpacked.
July 2026: A search of The Times of Israel's topic archive on Mandel turns up no public statement, interview, or action in which he criticizes Israel, endorses a boycott of Israel (BDS), or takes an anti-Israel stance. The documented public record through mid-2026 is consistent with a pro-Israel, pro-Jewish-identity posture.

Jewish identity and the entertainment industry's Israel moment

Howie Mandel (born November 29, 1955, in Toronto) is a Canadian-American comedian and TV host best known for "St. Elsewhere" and as a longtime judge on "America's Got Talent." He is Jewish by birth and upbringing, and since Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel he has been visibly engaged in pro-Israel and anti-antisemitism activity within the entertainment industry. Signing the Creative Community For Peace's "Israel Under Attack" letter placed him alongside thousands of industry colleagues who spoke out in the days immediately following the attack. Headlining the Beverly Hills "Roast of Antisemitism" put him on stage as a leading voice using comedy to push back on rising hatred. His podcast and interview comments, meanwhile, reflect a personal connection to Jewish identity that predates October 7, from his Hebrew school upbringing to his family's Kaddish tradition.

It is also worth noting that a watchdog site openly critical of Israel, Reverse Canary Mission, independently confirms Mandel's signature on the CCFP letter. That confirmation corroborates rather than contradicts the pro-Israel record: even sources built to scrutinize celebrities who backed Israel after October 7 have found nothing in Mandel's public record that runs the other way.

The bottom line

Howie Mandel supports Israel. The public record, spanning interviews, a signed industry letter, and a comedy benefit against antisemitism, is consistently pro-Israel and pro-Jewish-identity, with no contrary statements or actions found through July 2026.

Wear your own answer

If Howie Mandel's public stand for Israel resonates with you, you can make your own statement too. Our I Stand With Israel bracelet is a simple, everyday way to show where you stand, and it's part of our full Support Israel collection, built for people who want their pride in Israel visible, not just felt.

Last updated July 2026. We update these profiles as the record changes.