Israel's Consul General in New York, Ofir Akunis, on Wednesday evening accused New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani of antisemitism and knowingly spreading false blood libels against Israel. Akunis said Mamdani has no legal authority to arrest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but continues with incitement anyway.
The statement, circulated by journalist Tomer Almogor, marks the latest escalation in the diplomatic row between Israeli officials and New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. Akunis accused Mamdani of antisemitism and of knowingly spreading false allegations against Israel, specifically regarding Mamdani's claim that he would work to arrest Prime Minister Netanyahu during a potential visit to New York. "He knew he has no legal authority to arrest the prime minister," Akunis said. "That did not prevent him from continuing with the false blood libels and incitement against Israel."
The Zioneer has reported on multiple previous exchanges between Akunis and Mamdani, including over the al-Jazeera journalist incident and Mamdani's refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state. Earlier Wednesday, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee also called the New York City mayor an 'antisemitic villain' who lies about genocide, in a separate but related development. The back-and-forth reflects growing tensions between Israel's diplomatic representatives and the New York political scene.
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