Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated he intends to attend the upcoming United Nations General Assembly in New York City this autumn, notwithstanding warnings from the city’s mayor, Zohran Mamdani, regarding his potential arrest.
Mamdani subsequently retracted his earlier pledge, admitting that he lacks the legal jurisdiction to apprehend Netanyahu based on an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court, the global authority on war crimes.
The Israeli leader expressed to Fox News on Sunday that he was “not concerned” about Mamdani’s prior vow and criticized the mayor for “fomenting hate”.
“He is meant to serve as the mayor for all New Yorkers, including Jews, Christians, Muslims, and others, yet he is attempting to turn one community against another,” Netanyahu asserted.
Netanyahu referred to two separate stabbings that occurred in New York on Thursday, where a suspect attacked a Jewish man and an Asian man just blocks away from one another.
According to police, the suspect allegedly shouted “Allahu akbar” during the attacks. He has since been charged with hate crimes against both victims.
Both individuals survived the assaults, which provoked strong condemnations from Jewish and Asian American community leaders across the city.
Following these events, Netanyahu claimed that Jewish New Yorkers are “afraid right now.”
A representative for the mayor’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Mamdani, a prominent advocate for Palestinian rights, made his opposition to the Israeli military operations in Gaza a cornerstone of his campaign last year. Last week, he labeled Netanyahu a “war criminal” in a public address.
As a central tenet of his platform, Mamdani pledged to enforce a 2024 arrest warrant issued for Netanyahu by the International Criminal Court, which accuses the prime minister of committing war crimes in Gaza.
Israel has denied the allegations of committing war crimes in Gaza, and Netanyahu has dismissed the charges as “bogus”.
The Israeli military launched its operation in Gaza following the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. The assault resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and the capture of 251 hostages.
Since then, over 73,000 people have reportedly been killed in Israeli military operations in Gaza, including more than 21,000 children, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in the territory, whose statistics are regarded as reliable by the United Nations.
Last week, after the New York Times questioned him about his commitment to arresting Netanyahu, Mamdani explained that his administration had reviewed the relevant laws and concluded: “We do not have the independent legal authority to enforce this warrant”.
Mamdani called on the federal government to take action and stated: “Benjamin Netanyahu is not welcome in New York City.”
