Netanyahu Accuses Mayor Zohran Mamdani of Fomenting Hate After Arrest Threat

Netanyahu Defies Arrest Threat Ahead of UN General Assembly

The dispute centers on an arrest warrant issued for Netanyahu by the bbc.co.uk (ICC), which has accused the Israeli leader, his former defense minister, and the late leader of Hamas of crimes against humanity. During his mayoral election campaign last year, Mamdani promised to order the city’s police to execute the ICC warrant if Netanyahu entered the city. However, after the bbc.co.uk him on the pledge, Mamdani acknowledged that his administration reviewed the law and found that the city lacked the independent legal authority to enforce the warrant.

Mamdani subsequently encouraged the federal government to execute the arrest, declaring in a video message that Benjamin Netanyahu is not welcome in New York City. The mayor’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding the exchange.

Accusations of Fomenting Hate and Local Security Concerns

During his interview with anchor Maria Bartiromo, Netanyahu criticized Mamdani’s rhetoric, arguing that the mayor was trying to turn different groups against each other instead of acting as a leader for all residents. Netanyahu also linked the mayor’s statements to broader safety concerns for Jewish Americans in New York, which hosts the second-largest Jewish population in the world after Israel.

The prime minister referenced a pair of stabbings that occurred in New York on a Thursday, where a suspect stabbed a Jewish man and an Asian man just blocks apart. According to police, the suspect allegedly shouted “Allahu akbar” during the attacks and has been charged with hate crimes for each victim. Both men survived the incidents.

Netanyahu argued that the climate of incitement was making Jewish New Yorkers feel deeply uncomfortable and frightened to display identifiers such as yarmulkes in public. In a separate interview on ibtimes.co.uk with host Sid Rosenberg, Netanyahu further accused Mamdani of siding with the forces of terror and asserting that those who hate Jews and Israel ultimately hate America.

Dismissal of ICC Charges and Broader Political Context

Netanyahu firmly dismissed the ICC war crimes charges as “bogus,” pointing to sexual misconduct allegations against the ICC’s top prosecutor, who was removed from the post on a Friday, and characterizing the warrant as a diversionary tactic. The conflict in Gaza began following the Hamas-led attack in Israel on October 7, 2023, which resulted in about 1,200 deaths and 251 hostages taken. According to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza—figures considered reliable by the United Nations—over 73,000 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since the war began.

Amid the local political friction, Donald Trump assured Netanyahu in a social media post that he would not be arrested in any way, shape, or form while in the United States. Netanyahu also expressed concern that once-bipartisan political support for Israel in the U.S. is at risk as progressive and far-left Democrats align with Mamdani’s wing of the party.