Jerry Seinfeld mocks pro-Palestinian heckler at Sydney show: ‘We have a genius’

American comedian is outspoken supporter of Israel

Jerry Seinfeld mocked a pro-Palestinian heckler who interrupted his comedy set over the weekend in Sydney, Australia.

A video shared on X shows the protester briefly disrupting the Seinfeld creator’s routine at the Qudos Bank Arena on Sunday, shouting: “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”

As the heckler was escorted out by security, Seinfeld called him a m****. “We have a genius, ladies and gentlemen. He solved the Middle East!” Seinfeld quipped.

“It’s the Jewish comedians, that is who we have to get! They’re the ones doing everything.”

As the heckler continued chanting “Palestine will be free”, Seinfeld added, “Go ahead, keep going! They’re going to start punching you in about three seconds so I would try to get all of your genius out so we can all learn from you.

“It’s a comedy show, you m****! Get out of here.”

“You’re really influencing everyone here. We’re all on your side now, because you’ve made your point so well, and in the right venue, you’ve come to the right place for a political conversation.

“Tomorrow we will read in the paper, ‘Middle East 100 per cent solved thanks to man at the Qudos Arena stopping the Jew comedian.’

“You have to go 20,000 miles from the problem and screw up a comedian. That is how you solve world issues.”

The American comedian is an outspoken supporter of Israel and has defended the West Asian nation through the war in Gaza.

Israel’s air and ground assault on Gaza has killed more than 37,000 Palestinians, a majority of whom were women and children, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health. Most of the territory’s homes, schools, hospitals and places of worship have been reduced to rubble, and a majority of the 2.3 million population have been left homeless, and without adequate food supplies amid warnings of potential famine.

The assault started after Hamas launched an attack on southern Israel on 7 October and killed around 1,200 soldiers and civilians and took nearly 250 people hostage.

The Israelis have also killed over 500 Palestinians in the West Bank since October and destroyed some 115 Palestinian homes.

Seinfeld visited Israel in December to meet the families of the hostages. He also signed an open letter in support of Israel.

The Qudos Bank Arena incident isn’t the first time Seinfeld has been confronted by protesters rallying against Israel’s war. Students walked out on Seinfeld at Duke University as he was about to deliver the commencement speech in May and his show in Norfolk, New Jersey, that same month was disrupted by pro-Palestinian hecklers.

Seinfeld has described the protestors as being “off target”.

“I love that these young people, they are trying to get engaged with politics. We have to just correct their aim a little bit. They don’t seem to understand that, as comedians, we really don’t control anything,” he said on the podcast Honestly.

“It’s so silly. It’s like, they want to express this sincere, intense rage. But again, a little off target.

“So that’s, to me, comedic.”

This article was amended on 20 June 2024 to attribute the Gaza casualty figures to the Ministry of Health.