New York City is preparing once again to host world leaders during the high-level week of the UN General Assembly in September, but behind the scenes, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s expected visit is already generating a major security, diplomatic and political storm.
The 81st session’s high-level debate, set to open on September 22, will present Israel’s delegation in the Big Apple with a series of complex challenges, from unprecedented security arrangements changed at the last minute, to a schedule colliding directly with the Hebrew calendar, to an anti-Israel mayor now trapped by campaign promises he cannot implement.
Mamdani last September
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Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who entered office with strong backing from anti-Israel activists and anti-Zionist groups, understands that Netanyahu’s arrival could become the most embarrassing political test of his tenure so far.
Mamdani’s office has so far avoided issuing an official statement on the visit, but a senior official in the mayor’s office told ynet that Netanyahu’s arrival is viewed at City Hall as nothing less than a colossal “headache.”
One of Mamdani’s most central and resonant campaign promises to his voters was to honor the controversial International Criminal Court arrest warrant and arrest Netanyahu “the moment he sets foot in New York.” Several key activists from his political base are already waiting impatiently for him to fulfill that pledge, which the hostile mayor repeated several times, and are demanding that he lead protests, deliver speeches and even prevent the New York Police Department from securing Israeli convoys.
In the reality of running the city, however, Mamdani’s hands are tied. Under international UN conventions and U.S. federal law, New York City is obligated to allow security protection for heads of state, and the local government has no legal authority to block the movement of Netanyahu’s convoy, which is handled by the U.S. Secret Service.
That gap between campaign rhetoric and the actual limits of power in Manhattan has already confronted Mamdani once this year, when Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich made a surprise appearance at the annual Celebrate Israel Parade on Fifth Avenue. Mamdani was sharply criticized by his supporters then for “allowing” the Israeli minister to march in the city despite the court warrant.
Asked about Smotrich’s visit, Mamdani repeated that he believes the court order should be honored and that Israeli figures who support “genocide” should be barred from entering. Now, facing Netanyahu, City Hall’s dilemma is expected to be far more complicated.
Mamdani understands that any decision he makes will carry a political cost: whether he keeps a low profile and appears to surrender to Washington or Jerusalem, or attacks publicly and risks a confrontation with the federal government, which transfers vast budgets to his city.
On the logistical and security front, members of the Israeli delegation, working with the Shin Bet and the U.S. Secret Service, are trying to finalize arrangements, but one significant issue remains unresolved: while other international delegations have already reserved hotels in the city, Netanyahu’s accommodation has still not been finalized. In General Assembly planning terms, Israel’s continued search is considered very late.
The delay stems from the unusual decision to disqualify the prime minister’s regular hotel in recent years, the Regency, after a security failure was discovered during his previous visit. It emerged that the prime minister’s suite and its surroundings were vulnerable to potential gunfire through the wide glass windows facing the street.
Will he meet Netanyahu? President Trump
(Photo: SAUL LOEB / AFP)
Following lessons from that incident, the Israeli delegation is expected to stay this year in an alternative compound where stricter protective adjustments can be made. The goal is to fully isolate any potential line of sight by hostile actors toward Netanyahu and his entourage, while creating sterile security rings far from the windows of skyscrapers near UN headquarters.
Alongside the security arrangements, officials in Jerusalem and Israel’s UN mission held contacts with the UN Secretariat to change the timing of Netanyahu’s speech at the General Assembly. Under the original country schedule, the speech was set for the end of the week, very close to the eve of Sukkot, which this year falls on Friday, September 25.
To avoid a situation in which the holiday would be violated, or in which the prime minister, his entourage and the large security teams would be stranded in New York without the ability to fly back to Israel or properly prepare before the holiday begins at sunset, Israel asked the UN to move the speech to Thursday, September 24, around midday.
The change was approved and is expected to allow Netanyahu to hold his meetings, deliver his address and fly back to Israel before the city’s large Jewish community marks the holiday.
Netanyahu’s diplomatic schedule in New York is expected to be packed, but the main event now being arranged behind the scenes is a presidential meeting. Diplomatic officials confirm that advanced contacts are underway with the White House for an official meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the assembly.
For Netanyahu, a joint photo and public backing from Trump in a Manhattan conference room on the eve of Israel’s election remain a critical strategic asset, especially as he seeks to project a united and uncompromising front against Iran despite reports of a crisis in relations.
The Prime Minister’s Office confirmed Friday that Netanyahu and Trump spoke and “agreed to meet soon in the United States,” with the planned meeting expected to take place on the sidelines of the General Assembly.