Bill Maher engaged in a heated debate with Ana Kasparian, known for her liberal views, questioning her about which Middle Eastern city would permit her to wear Western attire.

Maher hosted Kasparian, the 39-year-old presenter of the progressive news program The Young Turks, on his Club Random podcast. Their discussion took a turn towards the Israel-Gaza conflict and women’s rights in the region.

In the midst of their conversation, Maher posed a challenge to the political analyst, who has frequently criticized the IDF for alleged war crimes. He asked her to name a place in the Middle East where she would feel at ease wearing her current outfit.

“Choose any city,” he prompted during their exchange.

“Consider Karachi, Cairo, Oman, Jordan; you seem to appreciate Lebanon. Beirut is pleasant when there’s a break from bombings and assassinations,” he added.

He was trying to argue the case that Israel is the safest for western values, including women’s rights and free speech, and said the nations nearby were less safe due to Islam.

‘Where do you think you’d be comfortable in that dress?’ he pressed again.

For the interview, Kasparian was wearing a boat-neck white mini dress which came to her knees – a far cry from the requirements of women in many Middle Eastern countries.

After trying to skirt around the question, Kasparian ultimately agreed ‘I’m sure it would not be comfortable in this dress in any of the various Middle Eastern countries.’

For the interview, Kasparian was wearing a boat-neck white mini dress which came to her knees – a far cry from the requirements of women in many Middle Eastern countries

The comic was debating the Israel-Gaza conflict with Kasparian, 39, on the latest episode of his Club Random podcast when he challenged her to pick any location in the Middle East where she would feel comfortable to wear the dress she had on

But she went on to include a caveat in her sentence, blaming her discomfort over what she was wearing on the fact that the nations ‘have been destabilized.’

‘Destabilized?!’ Maher his back instantly.

‘You’re not really blaming it on whitey, are you? You’re blaming Islam on whitey?’

Kasparian responded that she was ‘not blaming Islam on whitey’ as tensions rose and the pair began talking over the top of one another.

‘But what you’re saying – we destabilized, that’s why you can’t wear that dress?’ Maher said.  

Kasparian initially appeared to double down on her comments, shouting: ‘Did we not distabilize? We were finding terrorist organizations in Syria during the Syrian civil war starting under the Obama administration. Did that not destabilize Syria?’

But Maher continually tried to interject and bring her back to the initial question, insisting: ‘We are talking about your dress.’

‘It looks good, I know it looks good,’ she snapped.

Kasparian argued American destabilization had impacted the way she would answer the question

Maher continually tried to interject and bring her back to the initial question, insisting: ‘We are talking about your dress’

‘You’re saying you can’t wear that dress in Syria because of whitey destabilizing?’ Maher responded, ignoring her quip about the dress.

‘I didn’t say that. You’re putting words in my mouth,’ Kasparian hit back.

She went on to accuse Maher of trying to get her to engage in a discussion about ‘jihadism and Islam’, but the comedian noted ‘it’s not just Jihadism that is preventing you from wearing that dress. 

‘Are you saying every Muslim is a jihad?’ he added. ‘I don’t think they are.’

Ultimately, Kasparian said she ‘would figure something out’ but admitted: ”I’m sure a woman of my age who grew up in the western world would probably feel the most comfortable in Tel Aviv, I will concede that.’

Kasparian was recently accused of performing an antisemitic trope by pro-Israel group the Canary Mission after she did an impression of Jewish billionaire Larry Ellison on an episode of The Young Turks that some deemed offensive. 

Due to the backlash over her Ellison impression, Kasparian now claims that she’s the target of a ‘propaganda campaign’ to falsely paint her out as an antisemite, and believes that this contributed to her altercation with the woman this week.

Kasparian is the host of left-wing news show The Young Turks, and has publicly accused the IDF of war crimes on multiple occasions

While Kasparian is an outspoken liberal, she famously ditched the Democrats after some sympathized with a homeless pervert who molested her back in 2022.

The California-native opened up about her traumatic experience years ago, sharing that while she was out walking her dog in Los Angeles, two men – both assumed to be homeless and under the influence of drugs – had erections and grabbed her by the waist and proceeded to thrust into her body.

Kasparian, who is married to high school physical education teacher, said the turning point in her political stance was after the alleged molestation when she was scolded by liberals following her confession of feeling fearful to leave her house.

Some of the messages claimed she was ‘painting a wrongful picture of the homeless community,’ some even calling her a racist – though she ‘never disclosed the race’ of the men.

‘That woke me up,’ Kasparian said.

‘I’m at a point where I do not want to be pigeon-holed in any political tribe or identity.

‘Everything has become dogmatic and if you don’t buy into the entirety of the dogma you open yourself up to backlash. It’s not a fun experience.’