NYC Mayor Mamdani says he cannot arrest Netanyahu, despite prior pledge

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has conceded that he lacks the authority to order the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should he visit the city. This statement comes after days of intense discussion surrounding the possibility of apprehending Netanyahu, who faces an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC).

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Whatever the law allows me to do in New York City, that's what we will do, but we won't be writing our own laws to that end.

Netanyahu is expected to travel to New York in September for the annual United Nations General Assembly session. Mamdani, a vocal critic of Israeli government policies, particularly concerning the conflict in Gaza, had previously pledged during his mayoral campaign to order Netanyahu's arrest. This pledge was based on the ICC's late 2024 warrant, which accuses Netanyahu of war crimes.

The Israeli Prime Minister and his government have vehemently denied the allegations, labeling the ICC warrant as unjustified and politically motivated. Mamdani himself had described the situation in Gaza, where numerous lives were lost following Hamas's attacks on Israel in October 2023, as "genocide."

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Mamdani is failing to govern New York. Instead of focusing on his responsibilities as mayor and confronting the rising wave of anti-Semitism in his city, he has chosen to incite hostility and generate headlines by attacking the State of Israel.

Recent comments from Mamdani, published in The New York Times, indicated an "active conversation" within City Hall's legal department about whether he could direct the police to arrest Netanyahu. He stated, "Whatever the law allows me to do in New York City, that's what we will do, but we won't be writing our own laws to that end." This prompted strong reactions, with Israel's UN ambassador, Danny Danon, calling it "political theatre" and accusing Mamdani of inciting hostility. Former President Donald Trump also weighed in, asserting that Netanyahu "will not be arrested... while in the United States of America."

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Benjamin Netanyahu will not be arrested, in any way, shape, or form, while in the United States of America.