In an interview with the New York Times, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he is in 'active discussion' with the city's legal department to determine whether he has authority to order the arrest of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during his September visit to the UN. Mamdani said Netanyahu's 'place is in The Hague' and called him a 'war criminal,' but acknowledged the city has no intention of writing new laws to enable the arrest.
The new interview with the New York Times, published Saturday evening, adds significant detail to Mamdani's earlier statements. The mayor confirmed he is actively consulting the city's legal department to find a 'legal loophole' that would allow him to order the NYPD to arrest Netanyahu when he visits New York for the UN General Assembly in September. However, Mamdani also acknowledged that the city has no intention of writing new laws, limiting his options to existing legal authority.
Earlier Saturday, Mamdani first said his administration was weighing such authority, as The Zioneer reported. Israeli officials, including Consul General Ofir Akunis and UN Ambassador Danny Danon, swiftly dismissed the threat, with Danon stating that Mamdani 'failed in managing New York' and that Netanyahu will address the UN as planned. The exchange is the latest in a series of confrontations between Mamdani and Israeli officials, following Mamdani's previous statements opposing Israel as a 'Jewish state' and his calls for Netanyahu's arrest.
4 developments
- StrongIsraeli officials dismiss Mamdani's arrest threat against Netanyahu; Danon says he should be arrested
- DevelopingIsrael's UN envoy Danon: Mamdani failed in managing New York, Netanyahu will address UN General Assembly
- DevelopingNetanyahu says NYC Mayor Mamdani secretly hates America
- StrongUS Ambassador to UN calls Mamdani arrest threat to Netanyahu 'pure political theater'
Source and signal
- Internal intake