Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded Sunday evening to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's arrest threat, telling him to focus on fixing the damage he caused New York. Netanyahu compared Mamdani to Imran Khan, accusing him of trying to divert public attention from his own actions. The comments were reported by i24NEWS.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday evening compared New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, accusing him of trying to divert public attention from his own failures. The remarks were reported by i24NEWS and came after Netanyahu's earlier statement at 20:14 Jerusalem, in which he told Mamdani to focus on repairing the damage his policies caused New York. The new comparison escalates the prime minister's personal criticism of Mamdani, who earlier this week said he would use his legal authority to pursue Netanyahu's arrest.
Dated antecedents show the exchange unfolded rapidly on Sunday evening. At 18:50 Jerusalem, Netanyahu issued multiple responses to Mamdani's threat, initially accusing the mayor of diverting attention from his failures and calling the ICC a 'kangaroo court.' Those statements were reported by N12 and Ynet. At 20:14, Netanyahu released a further statement telling Mamdani to 'focus on fixing New York.' The new Imran Khan comparison, reported by i24NEWS, adds a broader international parallel to the prime minister's defense. The thread has evolved from a single report of Mamdani's threat to a series of official Israeli responses, with corroboration from multiple Israeli news outlets and i24NEWS.
Attributed background from The Zioneer's wider reporting: On Saturday evening, Israel's Consul General in New York Ofir Akunis and UN Ambassador Danny Danon dismissed Mamdani's threat, stating he lacks authority to arrest a foreign leader. Mamdani later acknowledged he would not pass new laws to enable such an arrest. US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz rejected the threat as 'pure political theater,' citing US law and diplomatic immunity. Former Israeli consul Gilad Katz called the threat 'deranged.' The dispute has drawn attention from US officials and former Israeli diplomats.
What remains open: Mamdani has not specified what legal authority he might still invoke, beyond acknowledging he will not seek new legislation. The ICC arrest warrant for Netanyahu, which Mamdani cited, remains a separate and ongoing legal matter. The practical implications of the mayor's threat, given federal and diplomatic protections, remain unclear.
8 developments
- StrongNYC Mayor Mamdani: Netanyahu is a 'war criminal,' should be in The Hague — but no new laws
- DevelopingNetanyahu says NYC Mayor Mamdani secretly hates America
- StrongIsraeli officials dismiss Mamdani's arrest threat against Netanyahu; Danon says he should be arrested
- DevelopingTimes of Israel opinion: Mamdani's arrest threat isn't the real danger
Source and signal
- Internal intake