American actress Jenna Ortega wearing Markgong SS25 RTW and Sheryl Lowe jewelry arrives at the Netflix Tudum 2025: The Live Event held at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, Los Angeles, California, United States. Photo: Image Press Agency via Reuters Connect

American actress Jenna Ortega is being criticized for not acknowledging Israelis in a statement she shared on Saturday about the ongoing wars in the Middle East and how they are impacting civilians in Iran and the Gaza Strip.

The “Wednesday” star, 22, said in an Instagram Story that the world is “crying” because of immigration raids in Los Angeles, the Israel-Hamas war, and the Israel-Iran war that started earlier on Friday morning. “Innocent civilians in Iran are caught in the middle of warfare. Palestinian cries are still being buried in every day [sic] media. My thoughts are heavy, my heart follows,” she wrote.

Ortega then urged her followers to “never stop paying attention” as “human freedoms spanning across seas are being violated with such violence.” She told the 37.2 million people who follow her on Instagram: “Listen to one another & love, but be angry too. Educate yourself as best you can. To say this doesn’t concern you, or that it isn’t your problem, is a privilege under abuse.” The Story was later saved to Ortega’s Instagram highlights.

An Instagram Story uploaded by Jenna Ortega. Photo: Screenshot

Ortega’s post came a day after Israel launched airstrikes against Iran, targeting nuclear sites and military infrastructure in the Islamic Republic, and amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. Ortega’s “Scream” co-star Melissa Barrera was dropped from an upcoming film in the franchise because of her anti-Israel social media posts about the Israel-Hamas war.

Ortega’s comments on Saturday garnered criticism from Creative Community for Peace (CCFP), a nonprofit, pro-Israel organization comprised of prominent members of the entertainment industry who aim to combat antisemitism. CCFP shamed Ortega for ignoring the suffering Israeli civilians are facing while Israel is engaged in two wars in the region.

“If you truly care about innocent lives, all lives, then don’t erase Israeli civilians,” said CCFP. “You wrote about being heartbroken over civilians in Iran and Palestinians being buried by the media. But where is your heartbreak for the Israeli families being slaughtered by Iran’s missiles and terror proxies? Where is your voice for the Jewish children who are forced to sleep in bomb shelters? For the Israeli families torn apart? For Jewish lives murdered simply for existing?”

CCFP noted that the regime in Iran “is the aggressor, deliberately targeting civilians in Israel in a blood hunt fueled by antisemitic hatred while also affecting the Iran population.”

“You say to ‘educate yourself’, so do it fully,” the organization added. “Don’t speak in vague moral poetry that hides support for terror ‘between the lines.’ Speak clearly. Condemn all violence. That includes the missiles launched at Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. That includes Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran. Shame on you!”

Ortega has regularly posted support for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, which began after the deadly Hamas-led terrorist attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.