As NYC can’t arrest Netanyahu, Mamdani leans into protest rights
After NYC was unable to find a legal pathway to arrest the Israeli Prime Minister, Mamdani reminded New Yorkers of their right to protest if he visits.
Benjamin Netanyahu said that he still plans to visit New York City for the United Nations’ General Assembly after Mayor Zohran Mamdani said that he was unwelcome, and called for his arrest.
The Israeli Prime Minister said that Mamdani was “fomenting hate” after the mayor had said New York City was looking into ways to arrest Netanyahu, ultimately finding no clear legal pathway for his detainment. Mamdani then called on the federal government to carry out the warrant, issued by the International Criminal Court that accuses Netanyahu of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
In an interview with Fox News Sunday morning, Netanyahu said Mamdani is “supposed to be the mayor of all New Yorkers: Jews, Christians, Muslims, everyone.”
“But he’s trying to turn one group against the other. And he’s foisting hate and fear.”
This month, Mamdani told the The New York Times the city’s legal department was looking at options for Netanyahu’s arrest in NYC ahead of his expected attendance to the United Nations in September.
But with no avenue to force his arrest, Mamdani called on the federal government to take action. “As I’ve said, I agree with the [International Criminal Court] that Benjamin Netanyahu should be arrested and tried for his crimes, as I do for anyone else charged by the ICC,” Mamdani said last week.
The ICC’s warrant, issued in November 2024, accuses Netanyahu of war crimes and crimes against humanity as a result of Israel’s military actions in Gaza. But the United States does not recognize the court, and protections are in place for leaders who visit the UN’s New York City headquarters.
“My administration has reviewed every avenue available under applicable law to determine whether New York City could execute the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant if Benjamin Netanyahu came here,” Mamdani said.
“It is clear that we do not have the independent legal authority to enforce this warrant. The federal government, however, does.”
President Donald Trump — an ally of Netanyahu — wrote last week that Netanyahu would not be arrested.
“Benjamin Netanyahu is not welcome in New York City, nor is any other war criminal at large,” Mamdani said in his video statement, which has over 1.3 million likes on X.
“I speak to Jewish-Americans in New York and they’re afraid right now,” Netanyahu told Fox News this weekend.
“I intend to come and speak the truth, speak for Israel and for the Israeli-American alliance from the podium of the United Nations.”