New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani encouraged residents to protest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during his expected visit to the United Nations General Assembly in September, after conceding in a viral video that the city has no legal authority to arrest the Israeli leader.
The video became the most widely viewed post ever published through the mayor’s official social media accounts, drawing more than 68 million views and nine million likes in less than 24 hours.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani
“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.”
He nevertheless called on the Trump administration to act. “The federal government, however, does, and I call on them to join the ICC and execute this warrant,” he said. “Benjamin Netanyahu is not welcome in New York City, nor is any other war criminal at large.”
The United States is not a member of the International Criminal Court, and President Donald Trump has already said Netanyahu would not be arrested while visiting the country.
The video was published hastily after Mamdani’s office learned that the New York Police Department, led by pro-Israel Commissioner Jessica Tisch, was preparing to clarify publicly that it neither intended nor possessed the authority to arrest Netanyahu.
People close to Tisch told ynet that city officials did not understand why the mayor continued pursuing the issue when it was already clear that his hands were legally tied.
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NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch
(Photo: Michael M. Santiago / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP)
Mamdani then decided to record the video, which he reportedly helped edit himself. It showed him seated between the flags of the United States and New York City beneath the title “Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal.”
“Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal, the architect of a horrific genocide against the Palestinian people,” Mamdani said.
He accused Netanyahu of responsibility for the deaths of more than 73,000 people and for injuries suffered by tens of thousands of children. He also claimed that surviving children had undergone amputations without anesthesia and accused Israel of attacking maternity hospitals and neonatal care facilities, obstructing food and humanitarian assistance and killing aid workers and journalists.
Israel rejects accusations that it is committing genocide in Gaza and says its military campaign targets Hamas, the terrorist organization that launched the October 7 massacre.
Responding to disappointment among some pro-Palestinian New Yorkers over his admission that the city could not arrest Netanyahu, Mamdani said: “It’s something I want to see happen. We’re talking about someone who has been accused of crimes against humanity, someone who has visited this city many times and who has been welcomed by previous mayors.”
“I want to make it clear that this welcome ends with me,” he added. “I will not welcome Netanyahu or any other war criminal when he comes to this city.”
Mamdani said the same position would apply to anyone wanted over alleged crimes against humanity, including Hamas leaders.
Anti-Israel protest in New York during Netanyahu’s address to the UN General Assembly in 2025
(Photo: AP Photo/Angelina Katsani)
Asked what residents opposed to Netanyahu and the Gaza war could do during his expected visit, Mamdani encouraged them to demonstrate.
“One of the bedrocks of our city is protesting,” he told reporters. “It is something that’s been a part of what makes our city so special, that New Yorkers can express themselves whether they are in support or in opposition, no matter what.”
Several hours later, Mamdani posted a Tisha B’Av message to New York’s Jewish community, wishing residents a peaceful and meaningful fast and urging reflection on Jewish history and resilience.
“I wish a peaceful Tisha B’Av to Jewish New Yorkers across all five boroughs,” he wrote. “From sundown tonight through tomorrow, those fasting will pause and reflect on the history and resilience of the Jewish people. May all those observing have a safe and meaningful fast.”
The message failed to appease the UJA-Federation of New York, which accused the mayor of using Israel for political purposes.
“New Yorkers elected a mayor to lead this city, not to make Israel the centerpiece of your political grandstanding,” the federation said.
“Your video is rife with distortions and disinformation. At a time of rising antisemitism, repeatedly singling out and vilifying the world’s only Jewish state for perceived political benefit is repugnant, puts Jews at greater risk and leaves many Jewish New Yorkers feeling targeted and unwelcome in the city we call home.”
The statement concluded: “Shame on you.”
Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, dismissed Mamdani’s campaign as a political stunt and said it would not prevent Netanyahu from addressing the General Assembly.
Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon
(Photo: CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP)
“Prime Minister Netanyahu will come to the UN, address the General Assembly and defend our country,” Danon said. “If you want to arrest someone, I think you should arrest Mayor Mamdani, because he continues to incite against Israel.”
Although Mamdani cannot order Netanyahu’s arrest, he has made clear that he intends to make the prime minister and his delegation feel unwelcome, including by supporting demonstrations during the visit.
New York mayors have previously used the powers of their office to register opposition to visiting foreign leaders. In 1995, then-mayor Rudy Giuliani had Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat removed from a United Nations concert for world leaders.
In 2009, requests by then-Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi to erect his traditional reception tent in the New York area were rejected, including a proposed site on an estate owned by Trump.